Shakedownsports.com

The Premier League can be a tricky place to do business. This week it seemed Chelsea was all set to add Brazilian defender Alex. The team had reached a transfer agreement to acquire him from PSV Eindhoven, and the only thing left was for Alex to fly to London and work out the personal terms of his contract. That final step would prove to be problematic.

Chelsea’s proposed transfer of Alex was thrown into chaos after the defender became so fed up with being questioned by immigration officials that he got on a plane back to his native Brazil. The defender spent about four hours being questioned at Heathrow [Airport] on Sunday after he told officials that he had arrived to join Chelsea.

I’ll be honest—what Alex did is pretty impressive. To be so stubborn that you’re willing to fly half way across the county and then fly all the way back because you don’t like how you’re being treated—that takes cojones. Americans should be thankful that their airport security workers are lazier than DMV employees, otherwise a similar complication could have quashed the David Beckham deal.

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