Wenger says the Marlon King case does not damage football

Marlon King is reportedly preparing to appeal against his conviction and 18-month prison sentence for sexual assault and actual bodily harm. The Wigan striker has also been sacked by his club after he was found guilty of breaking a young woman's nose after she spurned his advances. The attack took place in a London nightclub in December 2008 while he was on loan at Hull. King's agent Tony Finnegan has spelled out that his client has no intention of conceding his guilt. He said: "No one saw this coming in light of the evidence. He's very, very disappointed - because clearly, as he said in his evidence, it's mistaken identity. He didn't do that." But Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has confirmed King will never play for his club again. King, 29, was celebrating both his wife's pregnancy and scoring a winning goal hours earlier when he was repeatedly "cold-shouldered" by women in the Soho Revue Bar. The striker will be past the 30 threshold when he is a free man again, something which will count against him should he attempt to continue in professional football.

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ITN | October 30, 2009

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