KIERAN TRIPPIER has been cleared to play against Chelsea next month – unless Fifa backs his 10-week betting ban.
And whatever happens he WILL be available for Gareth Southgate when England kick off their World Cup campaign in March.
Atletico Madrid appealed to the world governing body after the England defender’s ban was imposed by an FA commission last month.
Trippier was found guilty of four breaches of regulations over passing on information ahead of his move from Spurs in 2019.
Last month, Fifa put the suspension on hold pending Atletico’s appeal, allowing Trippier to play for the Spanish league leaders.
And now a second FA panel has REJECTED Wembley’s attempt to put the start date of the ban on hold until AFTER the Fifa decision.
It means that, unless Fifa reject the appeal before it expires on February 28, Trippier will NOT serve any ban at all.
But even if he has to serve a suspension, it will expire at the end of next month, clearing him to play in the Champions League second leg in London and for the three March World Cup qualifiers.
Former Blackburn and England winger Stuart Ripley was on the three-man commission, headed by Sir Wyn Williams, which rejected the FA appeal.
They dismissed the argument that the dates of the suspension should be ‘revised’ as a result of the Atletico appeal, which has put the ban in hold.
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The commission ruled that while the FA rightly asked for Fifa to apply the suspension worldwide, Wembley only has power to act over English football.
In the written reasons, the panel said: “It was our expectation that Fifa would accede to a request by the FA that the suspension should be given world-wide effect.
“That is what happened but what we did not expect (or foresee) was that, thereafter, Atletico Madrid would make an application to Fifa for interim measures and that such an application would succeed.
“In our view, however, that subsequent intervening event does not entitle us to revise the terms of our decision.
“The FA suggests there is a real possibility that Kieran Trippier will serve a suspension which is far less in terms of its length than we considered to be just and proportionate given his misconduct.
“We acknowledge that this possibility exists in the prevailing circumstances. That, of course, is an unwelcome outcome.
“It is common ground that Trippier was suspended from football and football-related activity in England and/or for or on behalf of a club which is subject to the jurisdiction of the FA.
“Our decision does not suspend him from football for a club outside the jurisdiction of the FA; nor could it do so.
“He was entitled to think these long drawn-out proceedings had been finalised and that as from the end of February 2021 he could begin a new chapter.
“Given the uncertainty over any revised commencement date for the suspension, we have no means of knowing what the true impact of the suspension will be. That is not a satisfactory state of affairs.
“Kieran Trippier is entirely blameless in relation to the position in which he now finds himself. Accordingly, we have reached the conclusion that even if it was open to us to revise the commencement date of the suspension, we should decline to do so.”
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