‘A bit spiteful’: Ivan Toney criticises FA for timing of his betting charges

Ivan Toney has said the Football Association “was a bit spiteful” in its handling of his eight-month ban for breaking betting rules. The Brentford striker was charged with 262 breaches in November last year but had to wait until May before the FA announced his ban and £50,000 fine after he had admitted to 232 of the counts.

The 27-year-old missed out on the World Cup when he omitted from Gareth Southgate’s Qatar 2022 squad and although he accepts his punishment, he feels the timing of his charges being made public was harsh.

Toney told Kick Game: “It came out just before the England camp. I missed that and the World Cup. Honestly, that would have been my biggest dream. It was like: ‘Get it out now so he doesn’t go with England’ and then all of a sudden they want to wait until the end of the season [to announce the suspension].

“I call it a bit spiteful, but it is what it is. I felt like that was a bigger punishment. Even now I’m missing eight months of football I feel that was a bigger punishment, missing out on the World Cup, everybody’s dream, to missing eight months of football.”

Toney’s breaches took place over five seasons from February 2017 to January 2021. The FA revealed he had placed 13 bets on his own team to lose in seven matches during the 2017-18 season. Eleven of these bets were against Newcastle when he was on loan from the club. Two other bets were placed on a game between Wigan and Aston Villa, but Toney, on loan at Wigan at the time, was not involved in the matchday squad.

“None of it was match-fixing,” Toney said. “None of what I did or was accused of doing, none of it was match-fixing. If it was I understand that, ban me for eight months or if not longer.”

Southgate was critical of the wide-reaching