As expected, Sheffield United lost its legal dispute with the English Premier League and West Ham United over the Carlos Tevez affair. The Blades, relegated on the last day of the EPL season nearly two months ago, had two claims dismissed by a sports tribunal, both regarding the legality of Carlos Tevez’s appearances for West Ham last season. Sheffield wanted to see West Ham deducted points for fielding the player, and then have him de-registered from the club’s roster. After having those claims dismissed, Sheffield says it will review next steps with “professional advisers.”
As the Guardian says, try though it certainly will, “Sheffield United’s slow, slow death is [now] complete.” In a statement, the club said it was “very disappointed” in the outcome, particularly because “the tribunal recognized that the outcome of the decision turned out to be, in the panel’s own words, unfortunate in the extreme and that Sheffield United have done nothing wrong to merit this outcome.” Even so, the point is that there was nothing illegal about the Premier League commission’s findings, even if they happened to be in both the league’s and West Ham United’s favor.
As for West Ham, chairman Eggert Magnusson, who had nothing to do with Tevez’s arrival at the club last September, said, “We are happy that the matter is finally closed and all parties can now move on. The arbitration panel’s decision is very clear and reflects what we have believed all along.”