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You may remember John Bico's name from all the Thorgan Hazard drama not just in the summer (captain's armband fiasco) but in the winter transfer window as well when he tried to force through a loan switch to Anderlecht. Or perhaps from a year earlier, from all the Eden Hazard will-he/won't-he transfer drama. Or perhaps you've read about that one time he threatened Franck Ribéry with a baseball bat. Notice a pattern?
Bico says he's only 'advisor' to Thorgan Hazard, Eden Hazard has meanwhile changed agents.
— John Chapman (@BelgoFoot) February 12, 2014
Bico, now the ex-agent (FINALLY) not just to Thorgan and Eden but Kylian as well*, continues to stir up trouble however.
* It's unclear who initiated the split with Thorgan. Eden switched agents not long after his Chelsea transfer, while Thorgan seems to maintain an amicable relationship with the man, saying that he's a family friend. Meanwhile, Bico has taken over the running of Belgian second division club Royal White Star Bruxelles (Kylian's current club), which does mean that he cannot serve as an agent to any player as per FIFA rules. Yes, there was an inquiry/controversy about that part, too.
Bico's latest goes back to Thorgan's "failed" loan-switch from Essevee to Anderlecht. The ex-agent claims that of course he did everything by the book and in good faith, and it was in fact Essevee who screwed over everybody (including "Belgian football" as a whole).
"The moral of the story is simple: behave as well as possible, be correct with everyone and you're left with empty hands."
"Zulte Waregem got Thorgan Hazard for zero Euros, it's that simple. No rent for Chelsea, no commissions for Bico."
"During the Olympic Games in London, we negotiated with Patrick Decuyper (Zulte Waregem's previous managing director) for five minutes. After Thorgan gave everyone an outstanding season, he asked the board to leave. I then told him that he could be even better in six months, but now it's there to see what has come."
"Again, he hasn't cost the club a penny. I didn't ask a cent commission. I had hoped that the board of the club would be correct and would say: "We would like to keep Thorgan, but we let you go and wish you good luck!" But they lacked class and respect. Everyone, clubs and agents, knows now the philosophy of Zulte Waregem."
-John Bico; source: Sport/Voetbalmagazine via Sports Witness
In the original Sport online article, Bico also claims that Thorgan kept saying all along to Zulte Waregem that he wanted to leave, but all of this is just a snippet of a full interview that ran in the print version of Sport/Voetbalmagazine, so perhaps there is further detail that's being missed. Or, given Bico's history, he's just distorting the facts to stir up trouble since apparently he's feeling scorned about receiving no commissions (he stood to gain personally from a switch to Anderlecht, it goes without saying).
Regardless, it's yet another strike against the "advisor" who keeps putting his clients into awkward situations. As the kids say nowadays, SMH.