Leeds reveal details behind Kewell move

The row over Harry Kewell's transfer to Liverpool took a new twist yesterday with the publication of correspondence between the Leeds chairman, Professor John McKenzie, and Kewell's agent, Bernie Mandic, on the Leeds website.

McKenzie maintains the club were forced into a corner by the Australian and his representatives over the terms of any new deal with the Yorkshire club and then over the financial details of his transfer to Anfield, which saw Leeds end up with only £3m of the £5m fee.

The letters seem to back up McKenzie's claim, but also raise more questions about payments made to Maxsport, which the management company say were as compensation for previous "work" which went unpaid under the former Leeds chairman Peter Ridsdale.

Mandic's letter is dated 17 June and reads: "I would like to confirm our position regarding your player Harry Kewell. We are prepared to extend Harry's contract by two years, subject to Maxsport being entitled to transfer the player to a club of his choice at any time during the term of his new contract.

"Maxsport AG would be entitled to 50 per cent of any transfer fee, subject to Leeds United receiving no less than £2m. The major reason for our fee being so high is due to the extensive work undertaken by our Australian subsidiary Sports Corp. International over the past three years and with the authority of the previous chairman Peter Ridsdale. To date we have received no compensation whatsoever for this work."