Ian Wright issues apology to Everton fans after false allegations

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Ian Wright has apologised to Everton supporters after Merseyside Police revealed they did not receive any reports of threats from the Goodison Park hierarchy after the board of directors were forced to stay away from the 2-1 home defeat to Southampton due to “a real and credible threat to their safety and security.” The Toffees published a club statement just hours before kick-off detailing that chairman Bill Kenwright, chief executive Denise Barrett-Baxendale, chief finance officer Grant Ingles and non-executive director Graeme Sharp were instructed by Everton’s security advisers to stay at home to minimise the threat of violence.

Everton sources have reportedly disclosed to ITV that Barrett-Baxendale was ‘put in a headlock’ as she left the Goodison Park directors’ box.

Another incident allegedly saw her car surrounded and spat at, while chairman Kenwright is said to have received death threats.

BBC pundit Wright had questioned the alleged actions of angry Evertonians after Match of the Day’s coverage of Everton versus Southampton – something that he has since retracted in a grovelling apology following Merseyside Police’s disclosure that none of these incidents had been reported.

He said on Wrighty’s House: “This is why I should have said allegedly. That’s the mistake I made.

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“The thing is, Everton fans have always been very good, always. Afterwards I was thinking ‘why have we not seen anything.’

“I saw someone filming a piece of paper the other day, why is nobody filming Denise Barrett-Baxendale getting deadlocked.

“I am so angry at myself, I have really let them down. Everton fans have been very good.

“The morning it was happening, I got a message, a WhatsApp message from someone who is very high up, he knows Bill Kenwright very well.

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“After the correspondence, I was actually very angry with Everton fans at that stage and I thought, ‘yep, I’m going to have to say something.’

“I want them to be peaceful in their sitting and their protest. They always are.

“The fact is, I just want to apologise and now I want to see some proof.

“The one thing for sure is that board and those fans, that’s over. Because they really tried to throw those fans under the boss and deflect the fact they’d been so incompetent in the work to now.

“They wanted to deflect it onto the fans being nasty. I’m sorry Toffees, I’m sorry.”

Former Everton winger Yannick Bolasie took his hat off to the ex-Arsenal striker, writing on Twitter: “The love and respect I have for @IanWright0 one of the originals and realest, glad he’s come out and said that because it’s true….the way a lot of people started saying things about the fans was wild without any evidence just stories, a lot of people spinning their own.”

Everton fans stayed behind in their numbers after Saturday’s defeat in protest in a bid to drive the board out of the club.

The Toffees have won just three of their 19 matches in the Premier League this season – losing 10.

Frank Lampard’s side are sat in 19th position and are now seemingly set for yet another relegation dogfight.

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