Like a villain in one of his own comic books, rugby renegade Mourad Boudjellal is on the warpath. Not content having tipped European rugby on its head in recent seasons, he now wants to go a step further. He's tired of France and fancies moving his incredibly expensive Toulon squad to England.
The Toulon owner has given an interview to l'Equipe in which he stated that he has written to the Aviva Premiership in an official capacity to request that his side can join the English league.
It seems unlikely in the extreme but it would appear that he's giving it genuine consideration.
If this is not possible the next season, maybe the one after that. For them, besides being a big first, it would be a huge added value. And I 'm serious in my approach
Though it would be an interesting move for the Aviva Premiership, it would certainly be a huge blow to the Top 14 to lose one of their best teams to a rival league. It may also set a dangerous precedent for clubs just upping sticks whenever they have a problem with their national league.
Having said that, we just can't see it happening and we would imagine that Paul O'Connell will still be finishing his career in the Top 14. However, Boudjellal has cited the example of Monaco in Ligue 1 to show that it's not an impossibility and he has pointed to the commercial viability of the Premiership in comparison to the Top 14 as a reason behind his threats.
There are parallels with the story from October when Bath chief, Bruce Craig, was thought to be threatening to move his club Bath in to the Guinness Pro12. Craig, like Boudjellal, cited salary cap problems as the reason for the move but his interest in the switch seems to have cooled.
