i was chatting with my brother in law about this (he's a Real Madrid fan), and he did point out that while most footballers, in common with anyone who can afford an accountant, try to pay the minimum tax within the law, it's a bit unlikely he understands enough about finances to defraud the tax people. He may well have been told ' hay, we casn shift this bit to the cayman Islands, pay thsi bit in Guernsey, and open a couple of accounts in switzerland, and save x millions', and he said yes. Dis he? Who knows. was he told some of it crossed the lines into illegality? Who knows. If he got caught, it's right he should repay everything, with a large financial slap across the wrist. The problem is when money gets that big, it goes a bit beyond what most of us can manage, and accountants are accountable to no one.