A former Wanderers player has been arrested in connection with the alleged fixing of football matches.

The Daily Telegraph has reported that Delroy Facey is one of six men held by officers from the National Crime Agency.

The national newspaper claims it is part of the biggest match-rigging scandal for decades and that match fixers from Asia were targeting games in Britain.

Along with Facey, aged 33, who played 10 games for Wanderers between 2002 and 2004, scoring one goal, and is now an agent, the Telegraph says at least three of the men arrested were footballers.

It is the first time in decades that police have amassed sufficient evidence to hold those suspected of trying to fix a match in Britain, following a succession of similar scandals abroad.

The Telegraph reported that on Wednesday evening the agency said: “Six men have been arrested across the country as part of an NCA investigation into alleged football match fixing. The focus of the operation is a suspected international illegal betting syndicate. The NCA is working closely with the Gambling Commission and the Football Association.”

The identities of the teams involved cannot be disclosed for legal reasons, as the police operation is understood to remain active. However, they are not Premier League sides.

The suspected match fixers are being held under the bribery and fraud Acts at a police station in the Midlands. It is understood the Crown Prosecution Service has been liaising with police officers in recent days.