Glasgow Rangers striker Francisco Sandaza has been conned by a Celtic fan posing as a football agent representing a club in the MLS, and it looks like it’s going to get him in a sport of trouble with his club and the club’s supporters.
The striker, who joined Glasgow Rangers from St. Johnstone last summer, was contacted by man calling himself ‘Jack McGonagle’. McGonagle claimed to be a football agent, able to bring Sandaza to the MLS for more money than he was making at the Glasgow club. The man was in fact a Celtic fan, identified online as ‘Tommy’. The Daily Mail reports that Tommy has previously fooled former Rangers owner Craig Whyte and ex-SFA Cief Exec. David Taylor.
During the conversation, Sandaza is reluctant to share personal or private information at first, and shows he is aware of the dangers of talking to strangers on the phone who present themselves as agents. He says during the conversation, “I have to be careful because some people can call me and record it and put it in the papers.” He also tells McGonagle that he doesn’t want to talk about his personal relationship with Rangers manager Ally McCoist, following McGonagle’s attempts to entice him to speak poorly of his boss.
Sandaza mentions how much he enjoys playing for the club and its passionate fans, although he later admits he joined the club for the money and would leave for a bigger contract in the United States. The Spaniard is aware that when he discusses a potential move he is working outside the proper processes for football transfers, and tells McGonagle "Do not do it officially through the club. Send me the contract first. I don't want trouble if Rangers find out about this".
Aside from discussing a move without the club’s permission – something that, realistically speaking, goes on more than admitted in football – it’s all relatively normal behaviour from the player. And Sandaza actually comes across quite well at times. But we suspect that won’t be the abiding memory Old Firm fans take from the 23 minute conversation.
The essential facts are: A Spanish player admits he dropped from the SPL to the Third Division with money as the motivating factor and would like a move to a warmer climate than Scotland. He would also take the chance to play at a higher level of football than the Scottish Third Division and, preferably, to do it all for more money. He gets a call offering him the chance and says he wants to see any potential contract etc. before his club get wind of it.
It's not exactly the work of the most evil or duplicitous man the planet, or even Glasgow, has ever seen. Sandaza appears more a fool than a villain here.
Of course, we can expect to find several thousand residents of Glasgow (on both sides of the divide) take barely containable umbrage with such a shoddy moral standard.
Perhaps there might be a few others wondering why Rangers are paying a player £5,000 per week, rising to £10,000 per week in 3 years time - a fact which Sandaza also reveals during the conversation.
