There was a reason Chelsea and Manchester City were the last to be asked to join the doomed Super League project.
They were different to the rest of the scheming elite. Yes, by the end they were all in it together but the Super League’s architects needed to make it clear to Chelsea and City that they were going to be left behind before they could be strong-armed into joining.
It is less than 24 hours before news of the breakaway leaks in Italy that Bruce Buck calls Ferran Soriano, City’s chief executive officer, and tells him Chelsea are in.