Saturday 16 May 2015 19:30, UK
Hull manager Steve Bruce says he ‘can’t come to terms’ with Jake Livermore’s positive test for cocaine use.
Midfielder Livermore has been suspended by the Football Association and his club after giving a positive sample for the drug after Hull’s game at Crystal Palace on April 25.
Bruce’s mood was not helped by a defeat for the Tigers at Tottenham which has put them on the brink of Premier League relegation.
And he confirmed Livermore, for whom Hull paid Spurs £8m, is currently in ‘a dark place’.
"I'm shocked, saddened, disappointed, angry - all of those things," Bruce said. "Why wouldn't I be? I can't come to terms with it if I'm being honest but society today is unfortunately like that.
"The conversation I had with him is the hardest conversation I've ever had with any footballer. Informing him that he's failed a drugs test is not easy.
"He couldn't concentrate on anything really so it didn't really matter what I said. He's obviously in a dark place and we'll see what the outcome is from the FA and how they respond to it."
The conversation I had with him is the hardest conversation I've ever had with any footballer. Informing him that he's failed a drugs test is not easy.
And Bruce added: “They are now looking at Jake’s B sample and you’re going to have to have Jake’s lawyers – I believe he has to put his actions in writing before Thursday and then the hearing will be whenever it sits.
"It’s not for me to be judge and jury but I’m disappointed with the whole thing.”
