But Silkman insists he has no idea where the lost cash went. Speaking at his Hertfordshire home, Silkman said: "I'm happy for you to print what you like because I have done nothing wrong. Everything is kosher. I did not make the deal. I was only the man who introduced Yakubu to Maccabi Haifa — it was the two clubs that agreed a deal. I was just the go-between.
"All I did was pick the money up and hand it over to the Nigerians.
"Julius Berger wanted me to get the money for them, they didn't want it to go to Nigeria. Don't ask me why. You are dealing with f***ing Nigerians, you ain't dealing with normal people.
"Everybody knows that Nigeria is a very corrupt country. I can't remember now how much was there — but it was at least $100,000. I don't know what happened to the money after that but I never had one penny of the money that was transferred into my account."