Kolo Toure contests driving ban as he is 'too famous for public transport'

Soccer - FA Cup - Sixth Round - Replay - Blackburn Rovers v Liverpool - Ewood Park

Liverpool defender Kolo Toure dodged a driving ban for speeding after his lawyer argued that the footballer could be mobbed by fans or pushed under a train if he was forced to use public transport.

The 34-year-old was caught driving at 57mph in a 40mph zone, then at 72 mph in a 50pmh zone.

According to the Daily Mirror, his lawyer Lisa Wilson said in court: "Using public transport like buses or trains often leads to a surge of people which is a safety issue to him and the public.

"If that happened on the train track, someone could be pushed under a train by accident, or under cars on the roads."

She added that Mr Toure apologised for the two offences and "wasn't messing around" when speeding on the M6 and M56 last year. Toure said he was visiting his sick brother who had leukaemia.

He was fined £660, with court costs of £300 and received eight penalty points on his licence.

Kolo's brother Ibrahim died at a hospital in Manchester in June while he was playing for the Ivory Coast in the World Cup in Brazil.

According to The Guardian, a statement from the Ivorian Football Federation said: "A tough day for the Toure brothers. Just hours after the match Colombia v Côte d'Ivoire (2-1), Kolo and Yaya have learned of the death of their younger brother Toure Oyala Ibrahim. The entire Ivorian delegation to Brazil supports them in this painful circumstance."