Goldman Sachs in Manchester United flap

Ah, another day, another Goldman Sachs (GS) controversy. This one involves the soccer club Manchester United. The Glazer family, which owns the club, is angry over the role that Goldman Sachs' chief economist Jim O'Neill played in an effort to takeover the club.

O'Neill, a lifelong United fan and one-time board member, is "spearheading" the Red Knights, a group of financiers who met in London this week over a proposal to buy the team, according to the Financial Times. O'Neill also spoke to the press and apparently voiced some criticism of the leverage situation at the company. The trick for O'Neill is that the club is also a client of Goldman Sachs (Goldman Sachs news), which was part of a syndicate that helped with a recent bond sale.

The family has reached out to CEO Lloyd Blankfein to complain, and subsequently let it be known that the bank's assurances that O'Neill was acting out of his own personal interest were inadequate. This is a tough one. At most companies, personal hobbies would not be allowed to get in the way of business.

For more:
- here's the Financial Times article

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