Chelsea boss loses pay claim

A disgruntled former executive at Chelsea has failed to win a six-figure compensation payout from the football club.

Paul Smith, former group business affairs director, took the club to London Central employment tribunal for "unlawful wage deductions", which he claimed totalled £366,250.

But the tribunal panel's judgment, which has now been made public, was that the club did not make unauthorised deductions from his wages. Instead, the club was ordered to pay £4,084.10 towards Mr Smith's legal costs.

Mr Smith was employed by the club in 2003 but, due to an ongoing dispute over wages and a bonus, never signed an employment contract. He claimed he was promised various salary and bonus deals, and that chief executive Peter Kenyon offered him a salary of £500,000 plus a £250,000 bonus while "hungover".

Mr Kenyon told the tribunal no such meeting took place and said he would not have had the authority to make wage deals. He added that no executives were eligible for bonuses at that time, and claimed Mr Smith had not made a "genuine effort" to agree a contract.