The Watford forward Andre Gray has apologised after a breach of lockdown rules led to him being dropped at the weekend.
Gray and his teammates Nathaniel Chalobah and Domingos Quina were omitted for the Premier League defeat against Southampton on Sunday after reports that he held a birthday party at his home.
The forward wrote on his Instagram: “I wanted to wait to make [a] public apology as my first apology needed to be to my teammates and staff first for not being able to be involved in yesterday’s game and the risk I may have caused!
“I just want to reiterate that it was not a late-night party like what is being portrayed and only a gathering of friends which turned into a sort of football tournament on my birthday! I understand my responsibilities and will do what it takes to make it right, apologies again!”