The telegram channel 'Mutko Is Against' reported that a former English soccer player and current soccer coach who worked in Russia was involved in negotiations between Spartak Moscow and City Football Group (CFG).
According to Metaratings.ru, this person is Paul Ashworth. As a player, he played for Norwich City, after which he began a coaching career. He coached several Latvian clubs, as well as Kazakhstan's Astana.
In the winter of 2005, Ashworth took the position of sports manager at "Rostov" club. In two matches of the Russian championship, he served as a head coach of the Rostov team but was dismissed in early June 2005.
According to the media, representatives of City Football Group negotiate with the owners of Spartak about purchasing shares of the Moscow club. The CFG soccer conglomerate owns English Manchester City and several other clubs worldwide, including American New York City, Australian Melbourne City, Japanese Yokohama, and Spanish Girona.