Going back a bit, is it true that AC Milan were in fact scouting John Barnes but signed Luther Blissett by mistake?" asks Abdel Koussa, keen to find out if the oft-repeated story is fact or urban myth.

Unsurprisingly, no one has ever admitted to committing such a ludicrous error but the tale is still alive and well in Italy, where there is even a prominent anarchist society named after the man who was sensationally lured from Watford to Serie A for £1m in July 1983, only to return to Vicarage Road a year later after flopping spectacularly. In a bid to get to the bottom of the matter, we sought the views of Italian football journalist Gabriele Marcotti.

"There are two main reason for which I think it's not true," he says. "First, even the most ignorant and provincial person could see that Blissett and Barnes looked absoutely nothing alike. Second, the fact is that at that time Milan were looking for an out-and-out goalscorer and Barnes just wasn't that type of player."

Blissett's record of five goals in 30 appearances for Milan suggests he may not have been that type of player either but the fact remains that in the season prior to joining Milan he had hit 27 goals as Watford finished second behind Liverpool in the old First Division and, of course, in December 1983 he struck a hat-trick for England in his first international start. So perhaps the truth is not that Milan mistook Blissett for Barnes, but rather that they mistook him for a striker whose up-and-at-'em style could succeed in Serie A.

BASEBALL IN BRITAIN?

"In 1899 the UK Baseball champions were Nottingham Forest, while Spurs won it in 1906. Which other football teams have had baseball connections or are these team names coincidental?" asks Paul Smith.

The names are not coincidental. The National Baseball League of Great Britain and Ireland was founded in 1890. Four teams were involved, all with close links to association football clubs: Derby County, Preston North End, Aston Villa and Stoke City.

Baseball flourished particularly in the north-east with clubs in Middlesbrough, Darlington, Stockton and Thornaby. In 1933 a National Baseball Association was founded and professional leagues were formed in Lancashire and Yorkshire. The first professional games got under way in 1936, with the Yorkshire League made up of sides from Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield, Hull, Dewsbury, Wakefield and Scarborough. Games regularly attracted 5,000 spectators - and, on occasion, as many as 10,000.

For further information log on to: www.sabruk.org/history/uk.html and www.netfit.co.uk/link_baseball.htm.

DADDY'S BOYS

"With Jamie playing under Harry Redknapp at St Mary's, how many other sons have played for their Daddy's team? asks disgruntled Saints fan Niel Butler.

The most memorable father and son partnership was, of course, that between Brian and Nigel Clough, the latter playing over 300 games for Nottingham Forest during nine years there under his dad.

And who can forget Paul Dalglish joining father Kenny at Newcastle United in late 1997? Well, given that he only mustered 10 appearances in two years on their books, probably a fair few. Even harder to remember are the brief spells Paolo Maldini spent working under dad Cesare, also a Rossoneri legend. Cesare managed Paolo both at the San Siro and as Italy coach in the late 1990s.

Meanwhile Southampton coach Kevin Bond played for first Bournemouth, then Norwich, then Manchester City, each move taking him handily to the club his father John had previously joined as manager. Another Saints coach, Gordon Strachan, also gave a debut to his son Gavin while at Coventry.

And while we're on the subject, Colin and Andy Todd at Bolton, and Johan and Jordi Cruyff at Barcelona fit the bill, as do Lawrie McMenemy and son Chris, says reader Dave McKenna. Lawrie brought Chris to Sunderland as a coach.

Finally, to Old Trafford, where Sir Alex Ferguson gave son Darren more than 20 appearances in the Manchester United midfield before quietly suggesting he find his level, namely by stepping down to Wolves. Darren currently plays for Wrexham, incidentally.

MOST PROMOTED AND RELEGATED CLUB?

Dan Nicholls asked: "Which current league club(s) have been promoted the most times and which has been relegated the most times?"

"It's taken me from then until now to find out the answer," says an excited Pete Tomlin. "The team that holds the record for being promoted and relegated the most is Notts County.

"So far County have been promoted 11 times and relegated on 15 occasions, making 26 in total. Following closely behind are Grimsby on 25 (12 promotions and 13 relegations) and Bolton (12 promotions and 12 relegations).

"Bolton, Grimsby, Birmingham and Manchester City hold the records for promotions having done so on 12 separate occasions. The dubious honour of being the most relegated team goes to Notts County with 15 demotions in their history."

And there's more. Much more.

"The teams with the lowest promotion/relegation activity (excluding those no longer in the league or recent joiners) are Rochdale and Arsenal," Pete continues. "Rochdale have only ever been promoted on the one occasion and have suffered just two relegations. Arsenal have done it the other way round - they have been promoted twice and relegated once.

Can you help?

"Has a caretaker manager in the Premiership ever won manager of the month?" asks Matthew Gummerson.

"Real Madrid have appointed their third manager/coach this season. Has any team in the top four leagues in Europe ever gone on to become champions as a result of one or more changes in the management?" asks Alan Tenant.

"Can anyone recall the last Premiership (or top-flight) match that started with 22 British players?" asks Albert Man.

Have a question or answer? Send it toknowledge@theguardian.com