By Frank Dalleres
England striker Ivan Toney is set to return to professional football today after an eight month ban for betting offences when Brentford host Nottingham Forest.
The 27-year-old, who averages more than a goal every other game for the Bees, is set to captain the west London team on his Premier League comeback.
Toney’s suspension expired earlier this week, an occasion he celebrated with a meme post on social media proclaiming that he was finally “free”.
Brentford, meanwhile, have marked his return with a billboard of their star player at the Gtech Community Stadium, where they will play Forest at 5:30pm.
Here is a recap of why Toney was banned, what he and other people have said about the episode, and what could happen next.
Why was Ivan Toney banned?
An independent commission banned Toney for eight months in May last year after he admitted to 232 counts of breaking the Football Association’s rules on betting.
Toney’s offences took place over a four-year period from 2017 to 2021, and also earned him a fine of £50,000.
Thirteen of the bets he placed were on his own team to lose, but none were in games that he was playing and 11 of those were while he won on loan elsewhere.
He missed Brentford’s last two games of the season as a result of the ban, and was not even allowed to train for the first four months of his suspension.
It later emerged that his ban was reduced because Toney was diagnosed with suffering from a gambling addiction.
What did he say?
In June, Toney called the timing of his initial charge in November 2022 “spiteful” as it effectively precluded him from being part of England’s squad for the World Cup in Qatar.
“It came out just before England camp. Obviously I missed that and the World Cup. Honestly, that would have been my biggest dream,” he said. “I call it a bit spiteful, but it is what it is.”
In August he said he felt he had been made an example of, but insisted the lengthy ban would only drive him on to greater feats on his return to action.
“There’s a lot of haters and doubters out there thinking, ‘He ain’t going to be the same when he comes back’,” Toney said.
“Actually they’re right, I’m going to be a different man, I’m going to be even better than that guy that scored those goals before.”
What did others say?
England manager Gareth Southgate went against his employers by criticising Toney’s total exclusion from football and promised he would still consider him for selection on his return.
“I have spoken with him. I don’t know if that’s allowed, by the way, but if it isn’t then they can ban me and not add to his,” he said.
“What bothers me is we’ve got to look after people. I don’t like the idea that we just leave somebody, so that they are not allowed to be a part of the football community.”
Brentford boss Thomas Frank said it had taken too long to reach a decision over Toney’s punishment.
“As a general principle, uncertainty for everyone in the world is the worst thing,” he said. “I don’t know if it could be done shorter.”
Others accused football chiefs of hypocrisy for coming down hard on players for betting while taking millions in sponsorship from bookmakers.
What did Toney do during his ban?
Toney was not allowed to train with Brentford until September, but since then he has been following a carefully prepared plan to get him ready for his comeback.
At the time, Frank praised his player’s attitude as “an example for a lot of people and footballers”, adding: “The progress he has done is amazing.”
He undertook a fortnight of acclimatisation work before rejoining first-team training and playing in a series of behind-closed-doors games to build up his match fitness.
The programme’s effectiveness was illustrated earlier his month when he scored a hat-trick for Brentford B against Southampton.
On Tuesday the ban officially expired and Toney posted a meme on social media of comedian Dave Chapelle playing a prisoner who celebrates his release by shouting “free!”.
Brentford also marked the occasion with a new billboard of Toney bearing the message “He’s back” at their home ground.
How have Brentford coped without him?
Frank admits he is hoping that the return of Toney can spur a revival and drag Brentford clear of the Premier League relegation battle.
The £100m-rated forward has scored 68 goals in 124 games since joining from Peterborough for an initial £5m in 2020 and they have missed his goals.
The Bees lie 16th in the table, just three points above the relegation zone, and are mired in a run of seven defeats in their last eight league games.
They are 10 points worse off than after the same number of matches last season, when they were eighth, and have scored six goals fewer.
“He is a special character in many ways,” Frank said this week. “Of course it’s a massive boost. It’s like a new signing. He’s the second-best striker in my opinion in the Premier League.”
What happens now?
Toney will go straight into the starting line-up and captain Brentford in the absence of regular skipper Christian Norgaard on his return to the side, Frank announced this week.
He has spoken of his gratitude to the club and their manager for helping him through the ban and wanting to repay them by hitting the ground running against fellow strugglers Forest.
“Brentford are struggling but I’m sure when I’m back I will play a big part to get them out of the losing form,” he said last week. “I can’t wait to get back and be helping my team-mates.”
Toney also has huge personal motivation as he looks to force his way back into Southgate’s England squad in time for this summer’s Euro 2024 in Germany.
And despite thanking Brentford for their support, he has made no secret of his desire to move to a top club, perhaps even in the January transfer window.
“I’d like to play for a top club, everybody wants to play for the top clubs, fighting for titles and these kinds of things,” he said, amid links with Arsenal and Chelsea.
“So whether it’s this January for a club to come in and pay the right money, who knows? But my main focus is doing what I do on the pitch and let the background work take care of itself.”
