Brentford FC support suspended Toney

Brentford FC want to support their suspended international player Ivan Toney in his fight against gambling addiction. The Premier League club announced this on Friday after an independent commission had made a diagnosis of the attacker.

“Ivan and Brentford FC accept that breaches have been committed and sanctions were therefore inevitable,” the club said. However, the commission found that none of the allegations “related to events where Ivan could have a negative impact on his own team”. Brentford will therefore “now do everything possible to support him and his family in dealing with the issues raised in this case”.

Toney is currently serving an eight-month ban after admitting a total of 232 breaches of FA betting rules. The league had imposed a fine of around 57,000 euros about a week ago. With 20 goals, the 27-year-old is third in the elite league’s list of top scorers.

Toney is not allowed to train with his team until September 17th, and it will only be possible to return to play next January. After a personal hearing by a psychiatrist, the commission had reduced the original 11-month ban.

The Englishman was charged in 262 cases at the end of last year. The offenses are said to have occurred between 2017 and 2021, at that time Toney was still playing for lower-class clubs, and in some cases he is said to have bet on his own defeats.

Despite the allegations, national team coach Gareth Southgate called up the attacker and gave him his debut for the Three Lions in a 2-0 win against Ukraine in March.