“This was a genuinely innocent moment, which appeared to be something completely different when captured on camera.”
Crystal Palace’s Wayne Hennessey has been cleared of making a Nazi salute, the Football Association have announced.
The goalkeeper was charged by the FA in January after an image – which appeared on the Instagram account of his German teammate, Max Meyer – allegedly showed him making the offensive gesture during a meal with the Palace team.
Hennessey categorically denied the claims at the time, insisting on Twitter he had ‘waved and shouted at the person taking the picture to get on with it’ and ‘put my hand over my mouth to make the sound carry’.
Now, as highlighted by a statement from his club, the charge has been dismissed by an Independent Regulatory Commission following a hearing.
“I’m delighted that the FA have found me not guilty of this charge,” the Welsh international said following the hearing. “This was a genuinely innocent moment, which appeared to be something completely different when captured on camera.
“I want to state for the record that I abhor all forms of racism, fascism, anti-semitism or discrimination of any kind.”
Roy Hodgson, his manager at Palace, said: “I believe Wayne and his people were there eight hours yesterday putting their case forward. I’m very happy with the outcome because I always believed him to be innocent.”
