David Coote, the suspended Premier League referee, is at the centre of a Football Association gambling investigation after discussing a bet on a yellow card before he took charge of a match.

Messages obtained by The Sun newspaper quote Coote telling a friend “I hope you backed as discussed” in the hours after he booked Leeds United left-back Ezgjan Alioski in a 2019 Championship fixture.

Coote denies any allegation of corruption, but both the FA and the refereeing body Professional Game Match Officials Limited are now carrying out urgent inquiries into the latest scandal to engulf Coote. The new messages have come to light a fortnight after Coote was suspended over two other clips showing him repeatedly calling Jurgen Klopp a “c---” after officiating a Liverpool match.