NORWICH have suspended striker Lewis Grabban after he left the team hotel without permission ahead of their Capital One Cup victory at Rotherham, according to reports.

The 27-year-old, who has been the subject of three unsuccessful bids from former club Bournemouth, and was formerly on loan at Motherwell in 2007-2008, was not in the matchday 18 at New York Stadium and reports surfaced that the player had left the team hotel and made his own way home after being told he would start on the bench.

The Canaries are now said - by a number of national newspapers - to have acted by suspending Grabban, telling him to stay away from the club, as his exit from Carrow Road appears to be drawing closer.

His walk-out was not confirmed by boss Alex Neil, but he vowed to resolve any issues while refusing to weaken the club's stance on the fee Bournemouth will have to pay for the striker.

"I don't have any issues with any player. He might have an issue but I'll quickly fix it," Neil said after the 2-1 win at Rotherham.

"There won't be any shedding of light. Any sort of thing that happens behind closed doors stays there and that has always been the case and that will remain the case.

"As far as I am concerned Lewis Grabban is a Norwich player, bottom line, that is it. Every player has got a price, but they have to a valuation we think the player is at, not what they think the player is valued at.

"We have rejected three bids from Bournemouth and the bids we have received were not anywhere near the valuation of our player.

"Until we get to a stage where the bids are acceptable then Lewis Grabban remains a Norwich player."

Meanwhile, another former Motherwell player in the news, Nick Blackman, who was on loan at the Fir Park club in 2010, was involved in a racial abuse allegation at Portsmouth.

The Football Association is investigating a report of racial abuse by a spectator at Tuesday's Capital One Cup match between Portsmouth and Reading, the clubs said yesterday.

Reading officials spoke to referee Gavin Ward about something allegedly said to their striker Nick Blackman during the first half of the tie, which Championship (second tier) Reading won 2-1.

The club said on their website (www.readingfc.co.uk) that the FA had since asked for their comments and observations about the incident, on which they did not elaborate.

League Two (fourth tier) Portsmouth referred to "reports of alleged racist abuse" and have asked supporters who may have witnessed such incidents to contact the club in confidence in a statement on their website (www.portsmouthfc.co.uk),