Stokes: I’ve never gone off the rails

IF Anthony Stokes thought by moving to Iran he could escape the unwanted headlines and sneering gossip that have periodically dogged his career, he was clearly wrong. But accusations of going ‘off the rails’? He’s having none of it. The ex-Celtic striker has become a football nomad since he was forced out of Hibs in January 2018 following a breach of team discipline. Stints in Greece, Turkey and Iran were short-lived and, in some cases, ended in legal disputes. The 32-year-old accepts he’s no saint, but is confident he has been the wronged and not the wrong-doer since he went overseas. Now back on more familiar territory at Livingston after penning a 12-month deal, the Irishman has brushed off the latest barbs.

‘There’s been a lot said but look at the situations in the clubs abroad,’ he said ahead of a potential debut against Ross County today. ‘At Tractor (in Iran), I finished top goalscorer at the club and towards the end I got injured or I could have finished top goalscorer in the league; we kind of tailed off towards the end. ‘But I left Tractor because they didn’t pay me.

I’ve gone through FIFA about that. ‘Same situation at Adana [Demirspor in Turkey]. They were two or three months behind in paying me. ‘People say I’ve gone off the rails and I see things in the papers that I’ve been sacked. I’ve not been sacked by one club. I’ve done everything exactly by the book.’ Stokes confessed he did go AWOL towards the end of his time with his last club, Persepolis. In Dubai following two Asian Champions League matches, he sensed a growing problem with the coronavirus pandemic in Iran and did not go back.

Instead, he returned to his family in Dublin. ‘With them, it’s slightly different because with the coronavirus situation it was difficult for me — and for the club, I’m sure,’ said Stokes. ‘But I had to look after my own safety in that situation. ‘People say I’ve gone off the rails — and I know I’ve had my issues off the pitch — but in the last few years abroad with the clubs there’s been no issues on my part.’