It has been a while since football heard from Nélio Lucas. As the public face of Doyen Sports – an investment fund based in Malta – the suave Portuguese businessman was briefly one of the game’s most recognised agents, negotiating Marcos Rojo’s transfer to Manchester United and Manchester City’s £42m signing of Eliaquim Mangala, among many others.
But that all changed in September 2015 when a hacker calling himself “John” published details of third-party ownership agreements between Doyen and FC Twente on the Football Leaks website – leading to the Dutch club being banned from European competition for three seasons. “When I gave that click, I opened the door; he just took everything he wanted,” reflects Lucas in a new documentary, A Game of Secrets.
