Ivan Toney hits out at ‘spiteful’ leaking of gambling charges before Qatar World Cup

Ivan Toney believes the public leaking of news surrounding his gambling breaches was done in a ‘spiteful’ way to damage his chances of being picked for last year’s Qatar World Cup.

The Brentford striker has been banned from football for eight-months after he admitted multiple breaches of the FA’s gambling rules by betting on the sport.

Toney wasn’t picked for Gareth Southgate’s World Cup squad despite being one of the nation’s in-form strikers at the time, with allegations of his gambling coming to light in the days building up to the Three Lions squad announcement.

The 27-year-old explained that missing out on the trip to Qatar was a ‘bigger punishment’ than the lengthy ban that has been handed out to him by English football’s governing body.

‘People try to break people down,’ Toney told the Kick Game YouTube channel.

Ivan Toney has criticised the ‘spiteful’ timing of leaks surrounding his gambling charges

The Brentford striker wasn’t picked for England’s Qatar World Cup squad last year

‘It come out, just before the England camp, obviously missing out on the World Cup… In a way, it was kind of like: ‘get out now so you don’t go [away with] England’.

‘And then all of a sudden they want to wait until the end of the season… But it is what it is. They wanted to do it that way. I call it a bit spiteful. You just have to get on with it. 

‘I feel that was a bigger punishment, even though I am missing eight months of football. That was a bigger punishment, missing out on the World Cup. 

‘It’s everybody’s dream. I believe in myself and hopefully I can be at the next one.’

However, FA chief executive Mark Bullingham later stated that the striker’s omission was due to sporting reasons and not his gambling charges.

Toney was found to have broken 232 betting rules, with an independent disciplinary commission imposing an eight-month suspension and £50,000 fine following a hearing.

The England international was subsequently diagnosed as a gambling addict as the full reasons of his eight-month ban were revealed. 

He is unavailable to play again for Brentford until January 2024 and can’t return to training with the Premier League club until September.

England manager Gareth Southgate (pictured) opted for an attack in Qatar that Toney wasn’t a part of

Toney (middle) is currently serving an eight-month ban from football for breaching gambling rules

But, Toney is staying positive during his time out of the sport and has vowed to return as a ‘different animal’ in the future.

‘The club has been very helpful. Very supportive. Everybody at the club. And obviously loads of other footballers have messaged me as well. The support is good. But how I am, I don’t want anyone to feel sorry for me.

‘If I have done whatever before, a punishment is a punishment. Get on with it. I just want to focus on when I come back to training. 

‘I want to be a different animal when I come back. Playing in the league, it’s going to be frightening.’