Seems like the interview was given to a Norwegian TV channel who were doing a programme about match fixing there. I'm sorry but I still find his story completely implausible.
It'll go down the cricket route I imagine. Start with the Saints team and claims by Claus and work from there as it branches out to other clubs I imagine.
It's ancient history and virtually impossible to prove. Any bookmaking firm in this coiuntry will have kept precise records and if they had any doubts over these types of bets they would have blown the whistle at the time. They found nothing on Le God and won't on this.
I'll quote this from SaintsWeb: "MLT claimed he did it once and failed to pull it off ..ie he didn't win or lose any money. Claus is claiming it was a common occurance during his time at saints and players from other teams were involved. I imagine MLTs wasn't worth the time to investigate if Claus is hinting at PL wide betting scams that's a whole diffent level to MLTs claims." The claims are different.
I would give it little credence if Tiss hadn't already mentioned it. Pleased to see that Benali has cast doubt on it. Nicola must be steaming...absolutely nothing to do with him, but casting a shadow over the club's integrity. A FIFA investigation is a distraction we don't need at such a great time for the club. Hope there are no repercussions from this bearing in mind FIFA's dislike of English football.
Exaggerated to sell his book! FA looked into it and found nothing. No investigation because there was nothing to investigate. The current claims go wider but we are going back in time and as I said before it will be very difficult to prove. If any player or employee of a club had directly put a bet on this type of market the FA would already know. They have regualr meetings with the big bookie firms and this is, as with cricket now, under close scrutiny the whole time.
Do you think so? It all seems to me like it's headed for tomorrow's chip paper. If you asked me if Claus was the kind of person who would make up or embellish a story, I am afraid I would have to say yes, given his circumstances he is exactly that kind of person. After all, if he wants it to go any further he is going to have to start naming names to FIFA, and I imagine he would come unstuck there. That's without getting into the nuts and bolts of how it would work, because as far as I can see there's too options - 1. absolutely everyone from chairman to reserve player is in on it and has kept a vow of silence for all these years, which could be possible but would rely on all those people being so dishonest as to never speak out. Or 2. it's all between a few people at different clubs and no one else is ever told or finds out, which Benali has just said is impossible. I am afraid I think Claus has been reading too much of MLT's autobiography and given some extra material to Norwegian telly, not expecting it to get repeated anywhere else. Personally I even thought Le Tiss had used a little artistic license in his story although it's possible that it did happen. Standing by to be told I'm completely naive and deluded.
I refuse to believe that the Matt Le Tissier I know would defame himself for money. I also refuse to believe that he made a significant amount of money due to his confession. There was no investigation because it was one solitary, harmless incident which happened a long time ago.
Have you noticed he mentions penalties...cannot believe that bit because that would be match fixing. Can believe one player might give away a penalty to make money but there would be no collusion to do so. Can you imagine his team mates going along with it and lose points and possibly a win bonus.
FIFA apparently getting involved, the thing I don't understand is he says they never fixed an outcome of a game, but betting on penalties is directly influencing the outcome
Well, I know little about betting, but it strikes me that if, as in MLT's case, a player is being paid to make sure the first throw in happens very early in a game the bookies themselves might well be the main beneficiaries. I agree that somebody marching into Ladbrokes with £20k in their pocket, wanting to put the lot on the first throw in will alert suspicion. But what if a Bookie has taken large bets on particular outcomes and is a bit exposed? Might it not be cheaper for them to make sure that all those bets lose? I assume that on spot-betting of this type it's more difficult to balance the risk for them as there can be little "form" in these type of calculations. As for Claus, very sad indeed, but I agree that this is history and three is no-one still at the club surely who could be touched by this?
Let's be honest, it must have happened all the time and probably still does. The bookmakers will know about it but if it's more money in their pockets, they aren't going to complain. Welcome to the world of football.
Bookies used to get stung like this not by one person placing a bet on his own, the money is divided up and placed by members of the syndicate, at various turf accountants at the exact same time. The odds were not so quick to change back then, now it's almost instant. This is how the "Hole in one gang" did it, all those years ago (Man, I wish I'd thought of that one). Although they were legal, as were the chaps that could be seen years ago at minor race tracks with stop watches making their own timings, as the official times given in those days before technology improved, could differ wildly, leading to much more favourable odds and rich pickings.
Rupert Lowe has now joined in in the Telegraph. Says FA should have investigated when Matty wrote about a scam in his book. Hopes there will now be a full investigation.
"Lundekvam told to name names" - http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepag...tml?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter "Gambling experts' fears at betting culture" - http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepag...tml?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Lundekvam is talking absolute nonsense. He is a broke little rat and making up stories to make money. Spot fixing is completely unnecessary for footballers, they earn a ton of cash already. He is a liar and I have zero respect for him http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18801231 here is a story off Benali denying it
But he does say it's not about money, because footballers gamble all the time as a way of excitement and adrenaline searching.
