When England landed here on Thursday
afternoon, Capello was told of the situation developing back home and
immediately talked to Rooney. “He’s OK, absolutely no problem,’’ said Capello
of the England striker.
“He’s calm,
relaxed and he believes there will be a solution in a really short time. He’s
in a good moment of form and there will be no problem for the game. He’s told
me he’s good. In the last three days he’s trained really, really well.”
Rooney also received support from his
captain. “I know the manager’s spoken to him and he’s totally fine,’’ said John
Terry.
“As always,
Wayne’s one of the best players in the world and he’ll deal with it and go out
and perform like he always does on the pitch. He’s fine and focused on the
game. We all know Wayne, the type of character he is. He’ll certainly be OK.
“As players,
you learn throughout your career to deal with certain things. The only release
is out on the pitch to get away from it. When you’re on the pitch and the
training pitch you can switch off from anything in life. This game is the most
important thing.”
Wayne Rooney
Snr, 48, was held early on Thursday when police visited his home in West Derby,
Liverpool. His solicitors issued a statement saying their client “denies all
these allegations”, adding that “we are co-operating fully with the
investigation”.
Eight other
people, including Rooney’s uncle, Richie, 54, and the Liverpool-born Motherwell
midfielder Steve Jennings, 26, were also arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to
defraud.
“Detectives
today executed warrants at 10 addresses in Merseyside and Glasgow and arrested
nine men as part of an investigation into suspicious betting activity,’’ said
Merseyside Police in a statement.
“The arrests
are the culmination of a joint operation with the Gambling Commission and the
nine have been arrested for conspiracy to defraud.’’
The arrests
were made as part of an investigation into unusual betting patterns relating to
the match, shown on live television, between Motherwell and Hearts on Dec 14,
2010. Motherwell lost the game 2-1, although the allegations centre on the
behaviour and subsequent sending off of Jennings.
Having
already been booked for a foul on Hearts centre-forward Kevin Kyle in the first
half, Jennings was dismissed for directing foul and abusive language to the
referee, Stevie O’Reilly, about the failure to award his side a penalty in the
83rd minute.
An
investigation by the Gambling Commission, formed as an independent body under
the Gambling Act (2005), began a day later after members of the Association of
British Bookmakers publicly raised concerns about betting patterns on the game.
Earlier that
day, someone in Liverpool opened an account with Blue Square to register two
£100 bets on a Motherwell player being sent off.
The same
individual attempted to make further bets but was prevented from doing by the
company’s online security filter.
Stewart Regan,
the chief executive of the Scottish Football Association, said action was taken
after “extensive inquiries”.
He added:
“It is important to stress that the evidence gathered throughout this thorough
period of investigation has involved only one Scottish match.”
Motherwell
issued a statement, saying: “Motherwell Football Club can today confirm that
the Scottish Football Association made the club aware that one of our players
was taken to a Merseyside Police Station early this morning in connection with
an ongoing investigation.”
Richie
Rooney, who was detained at his home in Norris Green, Liverpool, was also
bailed pending further inquiries.
Also
arrested were a 22 year-old from Kirkdale, a 26 year-old from Croxteth, a 29
year-old from Bootle, a 31 year-old from Litherland, a 68 year-old from
Fazakerley, and a 36 year-old from Kirkby.
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