Ashley Young: Could earn Watford a windfall if he leaves Aston Villa
Intriguingly, the long-mooted transfer of Young to Manchester United was part of the proposal put forward by the discredited Sebastian Sainsbury consortium - exposed for including a convicted fraudster - to buy Watford.
More from Charles Sale... Charles Sale: Barnsley wage-cap rap for players' chief Gordon Taylor13/01/11 Charles Sale: Pearce primed for Team GB Olympic football team job in 201211/01/11 CHARLES SALE: Aussie row over Greg Chappell's long lunch09/01/11 Charles Sale: Sir Ian Botham all set for rematch with Ian Chappell07/01/11 Charles Sale: Schofield basking in Ashes success06/01/11 Charles Sale: Anderson swings £100k book deal06/01/11 Charles Sale: ECB bullish about hunt for England Test sponsor04/01/11 CHARLES SALE: Geoffrey Boycott in fight to peg back Shane Warne's world-record 708 wicket haul03/01/11 VIEW FULL ARCHIVE The email sent to Watford by Sainsbury's team, claimed that: 'Ashley Young is widely expected to leave Aston Villa in the current transfer window to join Manchester United - there will be revenues due to the club as part of the sell on clause.'
Watford, who sold Young to Villa for £9.65m are entitled to 15 per cent of any sell-on transfer fee higher than the figure they received.
Watford have declined to do business with the Sainsbury group, as did Charlton after they discovered the consortium contained Paul Garland, who was jailed for two-and-a-half years in 2006 after pleading guilty to 11 counts of obtaining money and property by deception.
BBC Sport somehow see no conflict of interest in David Coulthard - who will be part of a celebrity commentary duo with Martin Brundle for the next Formula One season - keeping his lucrative sideline as an ambassador for the Red Bull team.
And disgraced former Renault engineer Pat Symonds, who is not allowed an operational role in the sport following his role in Crashgate at the Singapore Grand Prix in 2008, was nevertheless given the platform to preach on the future of motor racing at the Autosport International Show in Birmingham.
Edward Gillespie, who orchestrates the Cheltenham Festival showcase of National Hunt racing, was a witness to how Kempton Park got their organisation so wrong for their big King George day last Saturday.
Cheltenham managing director Gillespie was one of the few watching racing from the sparsely populated £10 Silver Ring because there were still hour-long queues to pick up pre-booked tickets after the meeting had started.
This led to angry punters being allowed en masse into the overcrowded main stand. Bookmaker Ron Cooper was so frustrated by the lack of business in the Silver Ring that he went home after the first race.
Simon Greenberg, the new director of corporate affairs at News International, will have more than the News of the World phone-hacking scandal to discuss with the ex-editor Andy Coulson - PM David Cameron's communications director.
Tottenham fans Greenberg and Coulson, along with Sky Sports spin doctor Chris Haynes, have re-launched their Spurs in the Media supporters group that was mothballed while Greenberg worked for Chelsea and then the England 2018 World Cup bid.
West Ham pitch hitch Blue chip construction consultants Mace were hired by West Ham for their Olympic Stadium proposal but the deal broke down after one assignment because fees couldn't be agreed for further work.
West Ham have still to pay £5,000 owed to Mace, sparking industry claims that the split was caused by the unpaid bill. But Mace deputy CEO Mark Reynolds said: 'There is no issue with West Ham, we have yet to submit an invoice.'
The unwieldy, 17-strong Olympic Park Legacy Company board will have the final say on January 28 as to whether Tottenham or West Ham will be recommended to inherit the venue.
But it is understood the board are likely to take the advice of a stadium sub-committee that includes only four OPLC directors and will make their final decision the day before.
The £220 million refurbishment of the Savoy didn't include making adequate provision for bar staff, judging by the less than five-star service given to the long queue waiting to be served drinks before the Football Writers' Association tribute for Thierry Henry.
Explore more:People: Martin Brundle, Ashley Young, Thierry Henry, Darren Bent, Sebastian Sainsbury, Simon Greenberg Places: Birmingham
Source: Daily Mail
Source: Daily Mail