Saturday, March 15, 2014
Aneilka terminates contract with West Brom after receiving 5-game ban for 'quenelle celebration'
Although
the West Brom management claim to not have received any notification
from the player, Nicolas Anelka went ahead to announce via social
media that he will tear up his contract with the Baggies and leave
the club ove the fall out from his infamous 'quenelle goal
celebration'
French
player Anelka, who turned 35 on Friday, was due to start a five-match
ban after being punished for his controversial "quenelle"
goal celebration but instead he has decided to terminate his contract
with the Premier League club.
"Following
discussions between the club and me, proposals have been made to me
that I rejoined the group under certain conditions," Anelka
wrote on his official Twitter account.
"I
cannot accept. Wishing to keep my integrity, I decided to free myself
and to terminate the contract linking me with West Bromwich Albion
until 2014 as of now."
Anelka's
contract with the Baggies was set to expire at the end of the season
and it had already been reported that he was considering quitting the
Hawthorns after growing disillusioned over the controversy
surrounding his now infamous use of what many regard as an
anti-semitic gesture to celebrate a goal in West Brom's 3-3 draw at
West Ham on December 28.
On Thursday, the Football Association (FA) decided against appealing the length of Anelka's ban, issued by an independent commission for his actions.
Anelka, who has spent 12 years of his career in the Premier League with six clubs, is understood to have also accepted the ruling, which meant his suspension would have started with West Brom's match at Swansea on Saturday.
The FA were considering an appeal to obtain an increase to the ban, which was the minimum that could be handed out based on the governing body's new rules overseeing offences of a racist nature.
The
former France international denied allegations of being
racist or anti-semitic and said the salute was to show solidarity
with his friend, controversial French comedian Dieudonne M'Bala
M'Bala.
West
Brom, whose own investigation into the former Arsenal and Real Madrid
star's actions was expected to conclude next week, responded angrily
to Anelka's announcement and revealed they had received no formal
notification of his wish to leave.
"The
club confirms it has been continuing discussions with Nicolas Anelka
and his advisers as part of its own internal enquiry into the gesture
he made after scoring against West Ham United on December 28," a
statement read.
"Following
the conclusion of the FA's enquiry into the same incident, the club
had hoped to conclude its own investigations next week.
"The
club notes Nicolas Anelka's comments on Twitter this evening.
However, the club has received nothing formally regarding the
termination of Nicolas Anelka's contract from either him or his
advisers.
"The
club regards the release of such a statement on social media as
highly unprofessional and will make a further statement when
appropriate."
Albion
had already lost one sponsor as a result of the row and the club had
not ruled out sacking Anelka for his quenelle gesture.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments
(
Atom
)
No comments :
Post a Comment