FA ‘did all their Big Sam checks’

disrepute and warned about his conduct.

Using parliamentary privilege, which gives MPs and witnesses protection against libel laws, Collins said: “The tweets have been deleted but for the benefit of the committee they are still available online, although they’re not on his Twitter account.

“Puncheon said, ‘What I won’t accept is an opinion from a man who’s crooked and ruining the game. Neil Warnock, the man who signs players, gives them extra wages and appearance bonuses to make sure that they pay him to get into the team or on the bench. The fact he could even talk about training is shocking, he was never there’.”

Puncheon was reacting to a comment that Warnock, who has managed 15 different clubs in a 37-year career, made as a pundit when the Palace player missed a penalty in a 2-0 defeat by Spurs.

Warnock, 67, who recently took over as Cardiff manager, released a statement in response, denying the allegations and saying that the FA did in fact look into the matter. “These allegations are completely and utterly false,” he said. “Any suggestion that the FA failed to investigate this matter is simply untrue.”

Clarke also admitted that Sam Allardyce received a pay-off when he lost the England job but denied the FA failed to scrutinise the manager’s background.

Allardyce and the FA “mutually terminated” their contract after only 67 days when the 61-year-old was caught making indiscreet remarks by Daily Telegraph reporters.

Clarke and the FA’s director of strategy Robert Sullivan were before the House of Commons’ Culture, Media and Sport Committee, with the MPs grilling them on what due diligence was done before Allardyce was hired in July.