Soccer director indicted – A major development in soccer history of Norway smelling of Corruption?
Posted by africanpress on September 24, 2007
Morgan Andersen, former director of soccer club Lyn Oslo, was indicted Friday on charges he forged documents tied to the disputed transfer of promising young player John Obi Mikel.
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Morgan Andersen, pictured here when he was still with Lyn, has been indicted in the dispute over young Nigerian player John Obi Mikel. PHOTO: TOR RICHARDSEN / SCANPIX |
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Andersen, who now works for the Fredrikstad Football club south of Oslo, has repeatedly denied the charges against him. He faces up to two years in prison if convicted.
His case is unlikely to come up in court before next summer. Andersen’s defense lawyer, Cato Schiøtz, said he’d agreed with prosecutors that evidence needs to be collected in England, “and that takes time. Therefore, I don’t think the case will come up in court before June or July next year.”
Prosecutor Terje Nybøe believes Andersen forged a contract with John Obi Mikel in 2005. The Nigerian player had been brought to Oslo to play for Lyn, which in turn wanted to trade him to Manchester United. The allegedly forged contract enabled the transfer to go through.
Obi Mikel’s agent, John Shittu, however, claimed he had a deal to transfer the player to Chelsea. That led to a massive conflict, that eventually ended in a settlement that allowed Mikel’s transfer to Chelsea.
Fredrikstad Football Club officials, meanwhile, say they’re standing behind Andersen, and Andersen thanked them through his attorney for expressions of support from both Fredrikstad’s board and the team’s fans.
“They view (Morgan Andersen) as innocent until proven guilty,” said Schiøtz.
By Nina Berglund
Obi Mikel, The man surrounded by caused controversy, at the time he was hiding in a hotel room in Oslo, while Morgan Andersen and Lyn were looking for him – API*APN.
Lifted and published by Korir, API*APN source.aftenposteneng
