Southampton rocked by Lundekvam spot-fixing claims
EPL new boys Southampton have been stunned by claims from former skipper Claus Lundekvam that spot-fixing was common practise at The Dell during the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. In an interview with Norwegian TV, Lundekvam claimed that these illegal activities took place “almost every week” after deals were struck with opposing captains about the first throw-in or the first corner. He did state that the results of matches were never the subject of betting activity but it has still rocked the club.
FIFA’s chief investigator in England is going to investigate Lundekvam’s claims and his former team-mates have been quick to deny any involvement. Lundekvam was a regular for The Saints between 1996 and 2008 and went on to captain the side. Former Southampton star and TV pundit Matthew Le Tissier admitted one incident of attempted spot-fixing in his autobiography in 2009 but insisted that it had been an isolated incident. Le Tissier admitted betting on the timing of a first throw-in and had attempted to kick the ball out of play deliberately but this took place in 1995, a year before Lundekvam’s arrival at the south-coast side.
Francis Benali who made 371 appearances for the club and was team captain prior to Lundekvam also denied any knowledge of spot-fixing. He suggested to BBC Radio Solent that Lundekvam’s previous admissions of alcohol and drug problems may be contributory factors to this story. Former Saints boss Dave Jones has categorically denied any knowledge of betting scams taking place under his management between 1997 and 2000.
Whether or not there is any truth to Lundekvam’s claims, it is bound to cause some controversy. The former Norway international claims that several players were involved and bet “several hundred pounds, sometimes a thousand each”. He alleges that the bets were placed by a member of staff after agreement had been reached with the opposing captain. A typical scenario would be fixing the time of the first throw-in by a defender playing the ball down the wing for an opposing defender to kick the ball into touch. This was a frequent opening to a game so there was no chance of arousing suspicion. Lundekvam insists that it was common practise, not only at Southampton but elsewhere.
The temptation of easy money from bet fixing has always been there in sport but the Premier League has so far managed to distance itself from such claims. More concern has been given to the possibility of spot-fixing in the lower leagues where players are not on the inflated salaries of the Premier League stars and therefore more open to corruption. Former Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobelaar and ex-Wimbledon players John Fashanu and Hans Segers were all cleared of allegations of match-fixing in the 1990’s but these new allegations are bound to raise fresh concerns. It is certainly not the sort of story that Southampton wanted as they prepare for their return to the Premiership.
