Ex-England boss loses £10m in failed property schemes

A former England manager has revealed that has he lost £10 million over bank mortgages brokered by his former financial advisor.

Talking about the loss of money through the actions of former financial adviser Samir Khan, Sven Goran Eriksson told the Telegraph: “Yes, that’s right, £10 million. For most people in the world it’s a huge amount of money and it is even for me.

“Even if I was paid well with the jobs I had it’s big, big money. I’m not bankrupt. I still have some money. The big problem was the cash when you don’t have a job, which I didn’t for a while. Because Samir [got] me a lot of bank mortgages.

"I had to pay them. I needed cash. So I’m starting to sell.

“I have some properties, which I am going to sell. One I have already sold. I am selling important parts of my life. I have another property in Sweden I have to sell.

“I bought my dream house near where I was born, very close to where I grew up. I would never have [wanted to have] sold that because that’s the house I bought, an old farmhouse, and I restored it. It’s very, very nice but I need to sell it – it’s got mortgages on it.

“To have it as a proper house, I need people working there always because it’s too big. I can’t afford that anymore.”

Eriksson’s, 65, ‘dream house’ is on the market for £4 million.

Khan was introduced to Eriksson in 2004 and took control of his affairs in mid-2007. In 2009, Eriksson grew concerned and asked Deloitte to run checks on Khan, which led to Eriksson terminating his professional relationship with him a year later.

In May 2010, Eriksson’s solicitors obtained a worldwide freezing order in the High Court against Khan and the Swede formally launched legal proceedings against him.

Court documents claimed that Khan had access to confidential details “including mandates to bank accounts which gave him unlimited access to Mr Eriksson’s wealth”, adding that: “About finances, Mr Eriksson is not especially knowledgeable nor particularly interested, except to the extent that he wants to secure the financial future for his family and for himself, expecting his money to be invested soundly and rationally.”

Eriksson claimed that his money was lost on a range of negligent investments including a residential and leisure development of 92 flats in Southsea, Hampshire, and a proposed development of two plots of land at the Royal Westmoreland Golf Club in Barbados.

The money, according to the court papers, was used to fund a property for Khan and his family in Barbados, on building work on Khan’s own family home and “to earn secret profits that have been paid to himself’’.

Khan also “bought expensive artworks and sculptures”, according to Eriksson’s lawyers. Court documents allege Khan “misappropriated money for a variety of improper purposes, including unsecured loans to other companies for secret profits” and “undertaking loss-making speculations on foreign currency markets”.

As for what Khan has allegedly done with the money, Eriksson replied: “I think he has spent it.”

Eriksson managed England and reached the quarter-finals of the 2002 World Cup, Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup.

He has also coached Manchester City, IFK Goteborg, Benfica, Roma, Fiorentina, Sampdoria, Lazio and Leicester City, winning 17 major trophies.