The Premier League have concluded West Ham United have no case to answer following the claim the club had a "gentlemen's agreement" with West Bromwich Albion regarding the sale of Robert Snodgrass.
The popular Scot moved to Albion on a free transfer at the beginning of the January transfer window but was absent from the squad beaten 2-1 by the Hammers at the London Olympic Stadium little more than a week later.Former West Brom manager Sam Allarydce claimed during a post-match interview that Snodgrass' omission from his team was the result of a "gentlemen's agreement" between the two clubs, leading to speculation that both clubs may have been in breach of league rules.
Specifically, rule 17 states: “No club shall enter into a contract which enables any other party to that contract to acquire the ability materially to influence its policies or the performance of its teams in league matches."
However following an investigation, a panel has decided that neither club have a case to answer.
Sam Allardyce has confirmed Robert Snodgrass is unavailable to play in tonight's game owing to the agreement reached with West Ham to sign the player.#WHUWBA | #WBA pic.twitter.com/kS57KSXzRX
— West Bromwich Albion (@WBA) January 19, 2021
“[We agreed] he wouldn’t be allowed to play in this game," Allardyce said during a post-match interview, following Albion's defeat on Tuesday, 19 January. "If we needed to get the player, which we did, we had to agree to that.
And when it was made clear an investigation would follow in the wake of his remarks, Allardyce refused to explain when he was made aware of the arrangement. "“If the Premier League want to know about it they can contact us privately and we’ll tell them," he said.
“It’s up to the Premier League to let us know what and if we’ve done anything wrong - and then I’ll answer whatever questions they decide to ask me."
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