Wenger leads call to ban player who ‘threw game’

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Arsene Wenger has called for the player accused of fixing a match to pay off a £50,000 gambling debt to be named, shamed and banned for life.

The unidentified former Premier League player is said to have agreed to pick up a deliberate red card and persuaded three teammates to earn bookings in return for having his debts wiped out.

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Expose the fixer: Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has demanded that the player accused of fixing a match should be banned for life

Wenger admitted to being shocked by the revelations and insisted the player involved should be banned for life. The Arsenal manager said: 'It is surprising news and bad news. It does leave a bad taste in the mouth, it's a shock.

'I'm convinced that they should be banned for life with no hearing if it has been proved. Match-fixing is horrible. I never could have believed that it could happen here.

'I believe that the most important thing is that the game is clean. I can't believe it has happened in the Premier League, but if it has, there is no excuse. Everybody have to take responsibility for their own actions.'

The alleged case was among incidents revealed this week at a seminar on gambling at the Sporting Chance clinic in Hampshire.

Wenger insisted Sporting Chance chief executive Peter Kay must wave the player's right to anonymity for fear that rumour and speculation could see other innocent footballers fall under suspicion.

Wenger said: 'He has to come out with it because I don't think it is fair. If there is a confidentiality problem, then he shuts his mouth completely. I believe it throws suspicion into our sport that is unfair unless you name the guy.'

However Kay said on Sky TV yesterday: 'Part of our responsibility here at Sporting Chance is confidentiality and I would not breach that.'

The Arsenal boss admitted he would support a ban on footballers betting on all matches, not just games they are involved in. He is also concerned that the practice of betting on such factors as the number of cards and corners in a game should be looked at, as he feels it is open to abuse.

He said: 'I think that you can bet on the results maybe, I don't know. I'm not a gambler; Why should people be allowed to bet on things like the time of the first corner?

If you do that, the guy can say: “OK, let's have a corner, it will not influence the game. So it's an incitement a little bit. When it becomes too subtle, it can dilute the responsibility of the guy who is involved in it.'

Players' chief Gordon Taylor doubts whether the bribe claim is true, believing the player involved may have overelaborated.

Taylor said: 'It's disappointing to have this story put in the public domain and leave a cloud hanging over the game, and I would imagine the FA are asking Sporting Chance to be more forthcoming.

'I find it beyond the realms of credulity that a player would approach three others and ask them to get themselves booked.'

Wenger has experienced the down side of match-fixing while Monaco manager. Then, the bribing of match officials by Marseille president Bernard Tapie is thought to have cost Monaco two league titles.

In addition, Wenger has had to deal with problems among his own playing staff, with former stars Tony Adams, who helped found Sporting Chance, and Paul Merson having suffered with addictions.

Discussing their problems, Wenger said: 'My main priority was that everybody should live as a sportsman. I was lucky because Tony Adams had just changed at that time; he was a leader here and cleaned up his life completely.

Since then, he has shown what kind of results you get from that.

'With Paul Merson it was addiction to gambling and drugs. At the time he was here with me he was clean because he had just come out as well. I had no problem.'

 

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