Mo Farah has demanded a new contract worth in excess of £20m, the Lufbra Echo can exclusively reveal. The GB International and double European Champion stormed out of 'clear the air' talks with his club Newham and Essex Beagles, after he was told that he would have to stay in a 4 star hotel. Farah - a long time friend of the Echo - contacted us to vent his spleen about the "painfully slow" progress being made on his new contract. "They want to restart first thing in the morning," fumed the sub 13 minute 5k man "and so put me up in a Hilton. It's disgusting. I have never been so insulted in all my life. I just said 'you know what? I don't need this right now' and stormed off."
Farah maintains that he is being "more than reasonable" when asking Newham to buy him a new Bentley (complete with driver) as well as a swish West London home on top of a £5m basic salary. "I need somewhere to rest and since they've put a block on helicopter transport, I have to get to races at least in some comfort. These really are basic needs. Paula Radcliffe got a swimming pool from Bedford when she joined." Farah famously criticised UK Athletics for their poor hotel provision at the World Cross and this latest spat with his club has led many to speculate that his future could be away from the British Isles. "I've had some huge offers from Spain" revealed Farah this evening, "but I don't want to go there yet. I feel that my future is in London for the time being, but if Newham can't provide what I'm after then I might have to go somewhere like Belgrave."
The mention of a move to Belgrave is unlikely to sit well with the Newham faithful. One fan told the Echo that there would be "no way back" for Farah if he opted for the Claret and Golds. "Everyone knows that they are the club we most enjoy beating," said the Newham season ticket holder "if he goes there then that will be it. He'll need 24 hour security."
Farah, however, seems unmoved by such comments. "I have to do what is right for me and I think that Newham lack ambition. I look around the squad and I think how it is ageing. They rely on me far too much and so I think that I should be reimbursed accordingly- I just don't need the added stress." The 5k star has not been without his difficulties this year. Back in March, he was forced to ditch plans to appear on Masterchef and only last week had to endure the trauma of a long haul flight in economy class. "It was all they [the airline] had on offer," explained the clearly still upset star "I have never been so humiliated in all my life. It really is awful back there." Whilst it seems unlikely that such "nightmares" will have to be survived again, the future for Mo Farah is far from certain.