Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
EVANS 'TAXI THEFT' SHAME
West Brom players 'drove cab to Spanish hotel at 5.30am
NORTHERN Ireland star Jonny Evans last night said sorry after a taxi was stolen outside a Mcdonald’s restaurant in Barcelona.
The 30-year-old was one of four West Brom players involved in the 5.30am incident during warm weather training ahead of their FA Cup clash. Spanish cops quizzed them at their five-star hotel after they allegedly left the keys at reception.
The players said: “We would like to apologise to team-mates, the head coach, the club and especially the supporters.”
FOUR West Brom stars have been quizzed by Spanish police over claims they stole a taxi to get back to their hotel after a night out.
The international players – Jonny Evans, Gareth Barry, Jake Livermore and Boaz Myhill – allegedly drove off in the cab from a Mcdonald’s restaurant in Barcelona at around 5.30am.
A source said that after the taxi was dumped outside the team’s five-star hotel in the city, the vehicle’s keys were placed on the counter at reception.
The players went to their rooms but officers soon hoiked them from their beds and took them to a police station.
Furious West Brom head coach Alan Pardew said: “We are having an investigation to get to the bottom of it. There was a curfew on and it was broken. That is unacceptable and I feel let down.”
The players identified themselves publicly last night.
Team captain and Northern Ireland defender Evans, 30; England stars Barry, 36, and Livermore, 28; and Welshman Myhill, 35, said in a statement on the club website: “We would like to... apologise to team-mates, the Head Coach, the Club and especially the supporters.
“We freely acknowledge and apologise for the break of curfew which we accept represented a breach of the standards of professionalism required of us.”
They vowed to “co-operate fully” with the West
Midlands club’s probe. West Brom, at the bottom of the Premier League, were in Spain for warm weather training before their FA Cup clash today.
A midnight curfew had been imposed. The incident began at 4.30am on Thursday when the four stars booked a taxi to Barcelona’s Olympic Port area.
A source said: “It appears the players found everything closed. They decided to take a taxi to a Mcdonald’s on the way back. Somehow and for some reason, they left there in the cab but without the driver.”
A worker at the hotel – The One Barcelona – rang police after the cab was dumped there. The source said: “At around the same time [the police] received a call from the stranded taxi driver. The four players... weren’t formally arrested but were identified as part of a police investigation into them.
“A report will be submitted to an investigating judge who’ll decide on the next steps. The judge could decide to summon them for further questioning.
“It’s not clear whether the players did what they did as a joke.”
West Brom, known as the Baggies, said the quartet will face the “full rigours of our internal disciplinary procedures”.
Sources said players – who were put through their paces at top flight club Espanyol’s training ground – were unhappy about being in Spain away from their wives on Valentine’s Day.
The night before the alleged taxi theft Pardew, 56, had his coat containing his wallet and phone stolen in the city.
Somehow and for some reason, they left in the cab but without the driver INSIDER ON THE ALLEGED THEFT OF THE TAXI