Premier League has used corporate sleuths to probe murky ownership and control at Portsmouth since last summer

6 May 2010

The Premier League has used corporate intelligence firms to look at the ownership structure of financially-stricken Portsmouth. Sportingintelligence's editor, Nick Harris, who is also a sports writer and investigative reporter for The Independent newspaper, filed this piece for The Indie today.

The key deal under scrutiny was how Pompey passed into - and then out of - the hands of a mystery Saudi businessman, Ali Al Faraj, and what links and relationships Mr Faraj and his business associates have to other former owners.

Mr Faraj has never been to Portsmouth, let alone the club. Nobody at the Premier League has ever spoken to him, let alone met him. The League will toughen up its ownership screening from this summer.