Bean There... Done That

When Graham Bean was appointed the Football Association's first Compliance Officer, he was instantly nicknamed "The Sleazebuster" by the tabloid press and quickly made headlines investigating football wrongdoing on and off the pitch which covered everything from dissent towards match officials by players to alleged financial corruption in the boardroom by chairmen. Yet throughout his time at the English game's governing body there was a sense that his face didn't quite fit; as a blunt Yorkshireman and a former police detective he didn't shirk from asking awkward questions that put him on a collision course with the powers that be and he didn't take kindly to the "old pals" act that pervaded the FA whose ageing council members still held an iron grip on the professional game in the late 1990s. After leaving the FA Graham started his own business "Football Factors" which represented players and managers when they were summoned to appear before an FA Disciplinary Hearing. Among his stellar list of clients were Alex Ferguson, Rafa Benitez, David Moyes, Duncan Ferguson and many more and Graham's work with Fergie in particular led to more headlines as the FA sought to silence the dominant figure in the game. Graham went on to take up senior positions inside football clubs including working for Leeds United under notorious owner Mario Cellino during one of the most turbulent reigns in football history. An acrimonious split with the madcap Italian owner led to Bean becoming the FA's star witness in a case which led to the Italian receiving a lengthy ban from the game. He moved on to work in similar roles at Newport County and also crisis club Chesterfield FC but looking back on his career in the game after leaving his role as a detective with South Yorkshire Police, the advice of his late mother, Janet, rings true today: Football jobs are no good lad.

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