FA investigating yellow card picked up by Oxford defender against Arsenal
The FA are investigating a yellow card in Arsenal's 3-0 win over Oxford United after suspicious betting patterns emerged.
Arsenal, wearing their all white kit, set up an FA fourth round clash with Manchester City thanks to a brace from Eddie Nketiah and a strike from Mohamed Elneny, who was the subject of a brilliant new chant from the travelling Gunners faithful.
But controversy has arrived in relation to the booking of Oxford defender Ciaron Brown in the second half and the flurry of bets which were placed on him being cautioned.
The Northern Ireland international was shown a yellow card in the 59th minute, not too long before Elneny opened the scoring at the Kassam Stadium.
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He clumsily bundled over Eddie Nketiah and then scurried away with the ball before shoving Fabio Vieira and earning himself the booking.
However, the Daily Mail say that eyewitnesses in attendance for the fixture told the outlet that the booking was celebrated by many fans in the away section after they won hundreds of pounds.
Taking the matter seriously, it's claimed the FA have a dossier of evidence, the most damning of which are alleged phone messages sent before kick-off where it was claimed Brown would be cautioned in a betting scam.
One bookmaker is said to have lost £1,600, while one message sent is believed to have contained a betting slip for Brown to be booked.
— James John (@JamesJohn2427) January 11, 2023
The wager was around £200 and the odds were at 8/1. There's no word on how many bets were placed but the FA are still investigation the alleged spot-fixing and supposed corruption.
SPORTbible has contracted Oxford United for comment.
Brown, who came through Non-League, joined Oxford from Cardiff City in the summer.
In June, it was reported that one of Granit Xhaka's yellow cards was being investigated by the National Crime Agency.
Xhaka was shown a yellow by referee Andre Marriner in the 86th minute for timewasting against Leeds United
A huge bet of around £52,000 was placed for Xhaka to be booked in the final ten minutes of the game and an investigation was launched after bookmakers alerted the FA.
There was no review relating to Xhaka's conduct and no suggestion of any wrongdoing on his part.
Josh Lawless