• Dario Gradi did not do detailed check before hiring Bennell
• Overnight stays for boys encouraged as part of club culture
Evidence supplied by Dario Gradi related to the Barry Bennell scandal can be revealed by the Guardian today and includes an admission that he encouraged the culture at Crewe Alexandra for coaches to invite boys to stay overnight, or even take them on holidays abroad, and that he did not make detailed background checks on the man who has been described as one of the most prolific paedophiles in British criminal history.
Gradi, suspended by the Football Association since December 2016, states that he never had any suspicions about his youth-team coach during seven years as colleagues and indicates that one of the reasons why Crewe did not seek a reference from Manchester City, Bennell’s previous club, was because they were trying to poach him on the quiet.
Written by Exclusive by Daniel Taylor
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/feb/25/crewe-evidence-barry-bennell-dario-gradi-check-overnight-stays-boys under the title “Revealed: the evidence Crewe supplied on Barry Bennell scandal”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
