Sir Alex Ferguson has been on a secret mission to persuade the Nigerian teenager John Obi Mikel not to dump Manchester United in favour of Chelsea.
Mikel is already the subject of a Fifa inquiry because of the tug-of-war between England's two most powerful clubs, but Ferguson wanted to investigate for himself claims that the midfielder had turned his back on Old Trafford because he had been "intimidated and coerced into acting against his wishes".
Ferguson was even willing to break off from his holiday in the south of France to arrange a trip to Emmen in the Netherlands so he and Jim Ryan, United's youth academy director, could speak to Mikel after he had played for Nigeria against Brazil in the World Youth Championships. They deliberately did not inform the 18-year-old for fear of alerting Chelsea, whose conduct they have reported to the authorities. Ferguson's assistant Carlos Queiroz has accused the London club of "taking football into the jungle", adding that Mikel was "almost kidnapped".
Whether Ferguson managed to speak to his target is not entirely clear, having effectively planned to arrive unannounced outside the Nigerian team's dressing room at the Emmen stadium. What is apparent, however, is that the United manager is not willing to let Mikel go to Stamford Bridge without a fight. He believes the teenager is one of the most naturally gifted players he has seen and he has been heartened by suggestions that Mikel still wants to play at Old Trafford.