Baggies apology over taxi trouble
players and made no arrests but said the investigation is ongoing.
A statement, issued by the club on behalf of the four, read: “We would like to take this opportunity to apologise to our teammates, the head coach, the club and especially the supporters for the events which have been the subject of widespread and negative publicity.
“We felt it important we identify ourselves as the players involved in an incident which occurred during the training camp in Spain this week out of respect for team-mates, who otherwise could be implicated by association.
“We freely acknowledge and apologise for the break of curfew which we accept represented a breach of the standards of professionalism required of us as representatives of West Bromwich Albion FC.”
Evans is West Brom’s captain, Livermore is vice-captain and Barry has made the most appearances in Premier League history.
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Myhill is a former Wales international keeper.
A source from the Catalan police in the city, the Mossos d’Esquadra, said: “There were four people who wanted to go out in the city centre.
“Everything was closed so they got a taxi to a McDonald’s by the Barcelona port.
“At some moment the driver left the car for some reason and the four people took control of the car.
“They eventually returned it to their hotel and we got a call from the receptionist saying they had parked outside the hotel. This happened at 5.30am. The taxi was returned to its owner at 8am.”
Under Spanish law, the examining magistrate investigates accusations about a criminal complaint before moving to a trial phase.
Boss Alan Pardew last night refused to deny the Baggies’ season is in crisis with his team at the foot of the Premier League.
He said: “There was a curfew on that evening and it was broken. The curfew was 12 o’clock because it was a Champions League night and I think they kicked off at 9pm.
“So it was sort of, ‘Go into the city, enjoy a restaurant and watch the game’.”
The case is unlikely to go to trial, with such cases usually being settled with a fine.
FOUR West Brom stars last night issued a grovelling apology over a late-night incident in Spain, when it was alleged they stole a taxi.
Jonny Evans, Gareth Barry, Jake Livermore and Boaz Myhill said sorry for breaking a midnight curfew during a training camp in Barcelona. But they still face a club investigation and a police inquiry over claims they took a taxi from a McDonald’s drive-through and drove it to their team hotel.
The incident allegedly happened early on Thursday morning during Albion’s three-day training camp in Spain. Police questioned the