Premier League rape suspect will continue to play for club
The unnamed Premier League club whose player has become the subject of three rape allegations in recent weeks will continue selecting him for first-team duty, it has confirmed.
This week saw Metropolitan Police drop one of the allegations of an alleged offense in June last year.
But two others are still being looked into with the unnamed player on bail until October after being arrested in North London on July 4.
Earlier this month, the club insisted that the player will remain available for selection which is a stance it reiterated on Friday with the Premier League season set to get underway next weekend.
"As stated previously, we have confirmed that the player denies the allegations," read a statement.
"The police have issued a statement saying they are not taking any further action on one of the allegations and the player has had his bail extended pending the outcome of their inquiries. There have been no charges laid and the player can fulfil his professional commitments.
"We take our commitments and responsibilities seriously and have followed our safeguarding policies and procedures. We will keep this matter under close consideration and will review further if circumstances change," the club vowed.
The player was originally apprehended on suspicion of rape against a woman which allegedly occurred in June this year.
Taken into custody, he was further arrested on suspicion of an additional two incidents of rape which allegedly happened in April and June last year against a different women, though the second of those allegations was dropped this week.
As revealed by The Guardian, though, the player's club was made aware of one of the allegations last autumn which was reported to the Metropolitan Police in August 2021.
In March this year, Met Police opened an investigation into the alleged rape and another from the same woman which she reported in February.
The player then continued to play for his club’s first team last season and has taken part in pre-season leading up to the 2022/2023 term.
According to The Guardian, the club is prepared to immediately suspend the player if any charges are forthcoming. Otherwise, he will start the Premier League campaign on the weekend of August 6 with his teammates.
