Chris Lakey Glenn Roeder says Norwich City are innocent victims in the "irritating" match-fixing controversy which has hit Carrow Road this week. The Canaries manager says the club has nothing to hide over the allegations which followed the 2-1 Championship defeat by Derby County at Carrow Road a fortnight ago.

Chris Lakey

Glenn Roeder says Norwich City are innocent victims in the "irritating" match-fixing controversy which has hit Carrow Road this week.

The Canaries manager says the club has nothing to hide over the allegations which followed the 2-1 Championship defeat by Derby County at Carrow Road a fortnight ago.

Gamblers in the Far East are believed to have been responsible for a surge of bets just before and during half-time of the game, prompting speculation that they were acting on inside knowledge.

The FA have opened an investigation into the claims, which were made public following the intervention of Norwich MPs Ian Gibson and Norman Lamb, but Roeder says the club is clean.

"I don't know exact details of what's been said really, or the accusations that have been made about that particular game, but I would be 100pc certain that there is no one at Norwich City that is involved in anything at all," said Roeder yesterday as the squad prepared to leave for today's game at Bristol City.

"Anything like this is not good for the game, not good for any sport. I believe, if I remember rightly, it was only the week before there were accusations that a snooker player - I can't even remember his name - had lost a game 5-0 and there were funny betting patterns on that result.

"If professional sport isn't clean what is the point in being involved in it? But it's certainly unsavoury and certainly not welcome anywhere in any sport.

"It's not wanted, but let the FA have the inquiry, if that's what they're going to do.

"They will look at the evidence, sort things out and I'm sure eventually everything will come to the surface, as it always does.

"It's not something myself or the players will be too concerned about. We're only worried about winning that game at Bristol City."

The city MPs have been criticised by both clubs for bringing the allegations, first made in a Sunday newspaper last weekend, into the open and thereby revealing which match was involved.

"I don't know enough about how it became public," said Roeder. "In life people have to do what they think is right. Whether it is right or wrong is for other people to decide.

"I also believe that too many people publicly state their own opinions when they should keep their own counsel, so when I find out exactly how this has all broken and caused an irritation I will decide whether I want to say anything publicly or keep my own counsel.

"I wasn't surprised, I'm just disappointed that the accusations about wrongdoing are in a game that I was involved in as manager of Norwich City.

"But nothing surprises me, it's just real bad news that people are accusing teams, maybe individuals, that things weren't quite as they should have been."

City players had a day off on Thursday, when the story first broke, but striker Leroy Lita brushed it off as "nonsense".

"I have only heard a few bits from the boys today, but if anyone thinks that we tried to lose that game they are silly," he said. "All the lads are disappointed in the changing room. It is not even an issue, we don't need to get into it because it is a load of nonsense."