Former Super Eagles midfielder, Dickson Etuhu will appear in court on Thursday in Sweden, to begin the trial in match-fixing charges leveled against him according to reports.

The offence of gross bribery carries a maximum sentence of six years in prison, but the 36-year-old South Africa 2010 World Cup star denies the charge.

Etuhu, who played for Manchester City, Preston North End, Norwich, Sunderland, Fulham and Blackburn Rovers before moving to play in Sweden, insists he is innocent of the charges.

He is charged with trying to bribe a goalkeeper to fix the result of a league match between his former side, Stockholm AIK, and IFK Gothenburg.

The game was due to be played on May 18, 2017, but was postponed after goalkeeper Kenny Stamatopoulos told AIK he had been approached by Etuhu and another man with a view to fixing the game.

The allegations are raised in a 473-page pre-trial protocol, but Etuhu said his former team-mate must have misunderstood the conversation.

Etuhu argued: “I respect everyone’s opinion, but the facts remain the same – it never happened.

“It’s unbelievable that an ordinary conversation with a friend can lead to something like this.”