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Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
Mikel Arteta sends Arsenal transfer message as Alexander Isak statement speaks volumes
Arsenal met Newcastle in Asia on Sunday and the feelings at the two clubs couldn't be more different right now, with post-match comments from Mikel Arteta and Eddie Howe speaking volumes on both situations Just a few months ago, Newcastle United were flying. They had dumped Arsenal out of a League Cup semi-final, mocked them on the way to lifting their first domestic trophy in 70 years, and sealed a dream return to the Champions League. Arsenal, meanwhile, were left empty-handed after a promising season faded. Fast forward to this summer in Singapore and the momentum has shifted dramatically. As Arsenal paraded new £63m striker Viktor Gyokeres before kick-off, Newcastle were digesting the growing prospect of losing their star frontman Alexander Isak. On the pitch, Mikel Arteta's side beat the Magpies 3-2, but it was the scenes off the pitch that best captured the changing fortunes of the two clubs. Arteta now has six summer signings through the door, and he isn't done yet. Crystal Palace 's Eberechi Eze is next on the list as Arsenal look to build a squad capable of finally getting over the line. "We do have plans, we do have a lot of options and we are increasing the quality and depth of the squad with all the signings we've done," said Arteta. "We are super happy to have Victor with us. It's been a long journey to get him over here. You can see the boys and the environment, very excited with his arrival." Arsenal showed their new strength in depth in the win over Newcastle. Anthony Elanga gave the Magpies an early lead, but Arsenal hit back with goals from Mikel Merino and an Alex Murphy own goal. Jacob Murphy levelled the game in the second half before Martin Odegaard sealed the win from the spot. While Arsenal look ready to challenge on all fronts, Newcastle appear to be regressing and Eddie Howe knows it. "No, nothing's changed with his situation," Howe said when asked about Isak. "Naturally I think we're going to miss a player of Alex's quality and the group are going to feel that. There's no denying that." With no new striker lined up yet, Howe finished the game juggling game time for young, inexperienced forwards William Osula and Sean Nieve. It was a situation that underlines their current predicament. "Yeah, of course we're not deluded. We know that we need to bring players in. We've known that for a long time. It's been a challenging transfer window. Let's see what we can do towards the end of it." Asked if Isak might join the team in South Korea for the next leg of the Asia tour, Howe was blunt: "No. No chance." And on watching Arsenal spend big while Newcastle struggle to land their targets, Howe was diplomatic but honest: "From my perspective, you can never judge yourselves against other clubs. They will do what they have to do. We've got to try and do what we have to do." And Howe will have been irritated at best when he left the Singapore National Stadium to learn his latest transfer target, Brentford's Yoane Wissa is having his dream move to St James' potentially derailed. The Bees want a premium price as they are reluctant to lose another key player having already sold Christian Norgaard and Bryan Mbeumo. Wissa is reportedly threatening not to play if he is made to stay in west London. At the end of May, Newcastle looked like the team on the rise and Arsenal were working out how to take the final steps to silverware. Now, it is Arteta who is smiling and Howe left hoping the next few weeks do not define a season before it even begins. Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Times
7 hours ago
- Times
Taxpayer appears to fund footballers' salaries for ‘R&D'
Taxpayers appear to have funded player salaries at a top-flight football club on the grounds they were working on cutting-edge research. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) demanded repayment from the Scottish Premier League team Dundee United last year after it claimed £1.27 million under the research and development tax credit scheme. The scheme, which is meant to support innovations for the public good in science and technology, has been subject to a high degree of fraud and error thanks to lax checks by the tax authority. Under HMRC's rules a company can apply for the public money only if it has attempted a genuine advance in science or technology to benefit the overall field, not just its own business. A report was prepared by Dundee United's tax consultant ZLX before the club's claim, which stated that its players spent 24 per cent of their time directly conducting research and development activities, across nutrition and data collection projects. This meant, the report claimed, this portion of their salaries could be partially recouped from the taxpayer as a research and development (R&D) tax credit under the scheme. The report also stated that 80 per cent of the club chef's time was spent on nutrition science research, which could also be used to make a tax credit claim. Eligible research under the scheme must deal with an issue of genuine scientific uncertainty, which an expert in the field would not easily be able to resolve. • HMRC overhaul: £8bn tax credit scheme faces reform For one of Dundee's projects, the document claimed that the eligible uncertainty was that 'league involvement, challenge in European competition, playing style and management are all likely to change'. Simon Brundish, a conditioning coach at Strength:Lab who has worked with Premier League football clubs as well as with the English and Belgian national teams, reviewed the details of the research projects set out in the document. 'There is nothing groundbreaking going on here,' he said. 'A radar profile for each player and each position using arbitrary thresholds created by coaches' 'expertise' is simply standard practice in professional team sport.' He said that if the club had been paying an external consultant large sums for these kinds of services on the grounds that it was revolutionary research, it was effectively 'buying snake oil'. The tax expert Dan Neidle said: 'Football players are not scientific researchers.' He added that if Dundee United had claimed a quarter of the players' salaries as R&D expenditure, it was a 'scandal'. 'It is no surprise HMRC are investigating,' he said. Stephen McCallion, the owner of ZLX, based in Glasgow, said that the claim briefing had not been submitted to HMRC and that ZLX had never been interviewed by HMRC in relation to the Dundee claim. When asked if he disputed that the Dundee claim included a claim for player salaries, he declined to comment, citing client confidentiality. • Specialist agents under scrutiny in crackdown on tax credit fraud There has been controversy around whether it is within the spirit of the scheme for football clubs to make large claims. In February The Times revealed that Premiership teams including Chelsea, Fulham and Nottingham Forest had made claims. After the story, disclosures under freedom of information by HMRC revealed that at least 33 professional football clubs were under investigation into whether £17 million had been wrongly claimed. Chelsea was paid more than £3 million in R&D tax relief and payments by HMRC between 2020 and last year, according to its accounts. Nottingham Forest claimed a tax credit of £607,000 in the 2021-22 financial year, while Fulham claimed £758,000 in credits between 2019 and 2024. After the reporting, it emerged that Brentford had also made a claim, worth more than £3 million. Chelsea, Nottingham Forest, Fulham and Brentford were asked if player salaries had been included in any way in their claims under the scheme. Brentford declined to comment. The other clubs were approached for comment. HMRC has not disclosed the identity of which 33 clubs were under investigation. Dundee separately declared HMRC's repayment demand in its most recent accounts. Concerns have also been raised about the role of tax advisers encouraging companies to make claims that skirt the border of eligibility, with at least one adviser promoting the scheme as 'free money from HMRC'. ZLX described itself on its website as having the 'know-how' to navigate R&D tax credits. It previously stated on its website that it could assist clubs in making claims under the scheme for research into 'stadiums-spectator interaction', 'media and multimedia' and 'Covid compliance measures'. The page including this information has been taken down from its website. The company was criticised in a recent Scottish court case for what the sheriff found was a proposal to make an R&D claim on behalf of a fruit and vegetable company for installing a fridge. HMRC has faced repeated criticisms for its handling of the R&D scheme as its cost ballooned from £1.1 billion in 2010 to £7.5 billion in 2023. Officials have been accused of failing properly to check claims being made, leading to a high rate of fraud and error, with resulting losses totalling £4.1 billion since 2020. Freedom of information litigation last year forced HMRC to reveal it had failed to take sustained action to crack down on misuse of the scheme for five years, despite being warned by officials as early as 2017 that the scheme was being extensively defrauded. McCallion has previously said that the sheriff repeated comments made by the defendant — which had not been taken seriously by the ZLX legal team — that it was 'not impossible for a football club to claim R&D tax credits'. He also said that 'those who have started this witch hunt on football clubs have little or no technical experience but instead are using this platform to further their own endeavours'. Dundee United was approached for comment. The club's accounts state that it is appealing against HMRC's repayment demand.
BBC News
7 hours ago
- BBC News
Propper has no regrets despite swift Twente return
Robin Propper says "I haven't regretted" joining Rangers despite the Dutch centre-half returning to Twente for an undisclosed fee after only a season with the Scottish Premiership 31-year-old has signed a four-year contract with the Eredivisie club after being told he was not in new Rangers head coach Russell Martin's plans."Last season, I had the opportunity to play for a major international team," he told Twente's website."I couldn't pass up the opportunity, even though the decision wasn't easy, especially since we were close to the start of the new season with Twente. Nevertheless, I decided to make that choice. I haven't regretted it."It was a great year, both personally and in terms of sport, with all sorts of new experiences."However, Propper said "the choice isn't difficult" to return to the club where he was captain and where the team spirit "is so strong".Of his time in Glasgow, he added: "It was an eye-opener for me. I wasn't aware of how foreign boys feel when they come to the Netherlands. I think they need attention and time."In a year you experience a lot. I have noticed that now. In a foreign country, certain things are different. I'm glad that I was able to experience that."I played a lot of games. I had a lot of beautiful moments. Also a little less. "Of course I want to say that I had a great adventure at a beautiful club with a rich history. I always wanted that in my career."
