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It’s easy to forget about in this rollercoaster of a season (and one with such a fantastic potential ending), but back in November Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge was charged by the FA for illegally gambling on his own transfer loan deal. There was an apparent surge in bets placed on him ending up at West Brom before the deal was announced, raising questions whether he or his friends and/or family benefitted from said move.
Sturridge was originally given about a week to respond to the charges, but was subsequently given an extension until February to fully explain his case. Now that all the evidence is in, the FA will now have a hearing next month to decide the player’s fate.
This off-the-pitch issue has been hanging over Sturridge’s head for over a year now, and Liverpool Football Club have been aware of it since March 2018. The former England has reportedly defended himself to Liverpool, telling the club he has never gambled on football.
The good news for the club is there seems to be no potential punishment in the cards for the organization. However, if the FA (in their infinite wisdom) decide there was some wrongdoing from the player, they could levy a fine or even issue a lengthy suspension from domestic football. Hopefully it won’t come to that.
No matter the outcome, I’m sure Sturridge would like to put this behind him. The striker is out of contract this summer, and will likely be looking to score goals and dance in new environs (heartbreaking).