Matchroom Boxing founder and president, Barry Hearn, has revealed that he could have signed boxing sensation Tyson Fury years before his son Eddie reportedly had the chance to do the same— and when he wasn’t yet a professional, no less.
While Eddie Hearn recently explained how he had the chance to sign Tyson Fury during his appearance on Gary Neville’s ‘Stick to Football’ series on The Overlap YouTube channel, it turns out his dad and Matchroom godfather Barry also could have signed the Manc boxing star in his very early days.
Although Eddie detailed how he and his team ultimately passed up on the opportunity back in 2017 due to concerns over ‘The Gyspy King’s weight, according to Hearn Sr., the sporting promotion company might have lucked in on his incredible career years prior were it not for some big demands.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Lucky Block Casino, the 75-year-old insisted that not only did both he and his son “get it wrong”, but that Matchroom Sport could have secured Fury’s signature for what would now be seen as an absolute steal in the world of professional boxing.
As the OBE and former Professional Darts Corporation chair recalls, long before the subsequent meeting in Monaco roughly seven years ago, he first came across the Wythenshawe-born heavyweight at a fight in Newcastle, at which point his first impression was: “Big lad, great name”.
Hearn goes on to joke that he “could see money going around” in his head once his father John Fury said he was going pro and wanted to sign with him, but confessed that the terms were simply too rich for his blood when they demanded a £100,000 signing-on fee”.
Reiterating that such a number would have been a lot of money for someone who was still an unproven talent, especially back in those days, he held his hands up and admitted, “I made the first mistake” — little did he know his son and successor would go on to make the same one years later.
Defending their latter position that they simply didn’t believe the current WBC champion was capable of recovering his career in 2017, when Fury famously suffered from bouts of depression and weight gain, Hearn simply added: “You can have to take your hat off to Tyson Fury, he turned his life around”.
Barry went on to discuss the likes of Anthony Joshua too and his own hopes of regaining that boxing supremacy that he was on course for, insisting that he wants him to secure the big fights against the likes of Wilder, Fury and more.
As for the 35-year-old fighter himself, Fury looks to have finally booked his long-talked-about and heavily drawn-out match against Oleksandr Usyk.
Is it actually going to happen this time?
Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk latest official ‘Ring of Fire’ fight poster ahead of Feb 17th… pic.twitter.com/hCiG2IB7lj
Featured Images — Lucky Block Casino/paul62_2017 (via Flickr)
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Everton are reportedly already hoping to sign Jack Grealish from Manchester City permanently
Danny Jones
Everton FC are reportedly already considering signing Jack Grealish on a permanent deal after an impressive start to his spell on loan from Manchester City.
The former Aston Villa talisman has struggled to remain in the starting XI under Pep Guardiola since joining the club in 2021, but since arriving on Merseyside, he’s already been a difference-maker in every match for the Toffees thus far.
Grealish has not only registered four assists in just two starts for Everton but also won the very first player of the month award in the Premier League this season for his contributions.
Safe to say he’s fast made a big impact over in Liverpool – hence why it is now thought that manager David Moyes wants to make his transfer permanent.
Becoming just the 10th Toffee to ever win the accolade, the Birmingham-born creator is now thought to be the primary transfer target, despite the summer window having only recently closed.
He writes that despite the deal between Everton and Man City already including a £50 million option to buy next summer, that number is “not fixed and is more a consequence of accounting than a set price.”
The England international still has two years on his contract in the blue half of Manchester, but the previous valuation (which is half the amount City paid for him in a then record fee for a British player), so it is believed that he could be signed for an even better cut-price offer as his deal runs down.
Put it this way, it looks like the supporters would do just about anything to keep him at the Hill Dickinson.
Jack Grealish giving his shirt to an Everton fan after their brilliant win away at Wolves today.
Bascombe goes on to explain, however, that his salary considerations could be a significant obstacle. Grealish is estimated to be earning approximately £12m a year, which is almost certainly too rich for Everton’s blood.
Taking that into account, it’d be a case of whether or not the Brummy forward would be willing to accept a much lower wage to depart the Etihad Stadium for Everton long-term; alternatively, waiting for him to become a free agent in a few transfer windows’ time would also be an option.
What about you, Blues: would you like to see Jack Grealish stay and fight for his place under Guardiola, or would you understand/support him making his Everton permanent?
Interestingly, there could be yet more shuffling of the pack in the middle of the park for Pep, as a forgotten man is apparently going to be given another chance to revive his City career…
Kalvin Phillips is reportedly set to be reintegrated into the Manchester City squad
Danny Jones
Long-exiled Manchester City player Kalvin Phillips is reportedly on the verge of being reintegrated into Pep Guardiola’s squad this season.
The ex-Leeds United star, who signed for the Blues back in 2022, has still only made just 16 appearances for the club, but could now be eyeing up a potential renaissance.
Man City have made plenty of signings this year, but with a number of outgoings and several injuries in key positions, it looks like there could be an avenue for the one-time England international to fight his way back into the team.
As per Telegraph Sport‘s Mike McGrath, Kalvin Phillips is set to be reintroduced to City’s 25-man Premier League selection; the question is, can he make it into a first-team XI?
🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Kalvin Phillips has chance to resurrect career at the Etihad Stadium after failed loan spells with Ipswich and West Ham
According to McGrath, Phillips will be “given a chance to resurrect his career at the Etihad Stadium” with the meat and potatoes of the 2025/26 campaign still yet to get properly underway.
Now 29, the Yorkshireman is well and truly within the crucial ‘prime’ years as an athlete, and after such an extended period on the sidelines, he’ll be more motivated than anyone to get his career back on track.
The central defensive midfielder – who was formerly considered a key cog in the middle of the park for Leeds – has spent two loan spells away from the Etihad, but neither really worked out for the undeniably talented footballer.
Having joined West Ham for the latter portion of the 23/24 term and spending the last 12 months on loan at struggling Ipswich Town, his time at both clubs was pretty forgettable, punctuated by little more than a couple of unfortunate red cards and more time on the bench.
Speaking to Sky Sports fairly recently, he confessed that the last couple of years have been very difficult and was visibly emotional discussing his struggles since moving to Man City.
It’s also worth noting that Guardiola himself has admitted to feeling “so bad” for Kalvin Phillips’ situation – perhaps why he now looks like he could be given a second chance.
CDM-wise, Rodri and Nico González are considered the go-to options, but Stockport-born Rico Lewis and Mateo Kovačić have also been used in the role.
Once again, although Man City face somewhat of an injury crisis ahead of the Manchester derby this weekend, any prolonged absences could at least see an opportunity arise for the forgotten man.
What do you make of Kalvin Phillips’ chances of being restored to the Manchester City squad and maybe even putting himself back into national team contention ahead of the World Cup?
Danny Jones -
15th January 2024 
