Bureaucracy regularly moves in mysterious ways and, yesterday, it enraged Adrian Boothroyd, the Watford manager. He was incensed by the decision of the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal to deport Al Bangura, his talented midfield player.

Bangura, 19, had his application for leave of stay in the United Kingdom turned down and faces a return to his native Sierra Leone. He became a father only ten days ago and could be forced to leave behind his son, Samal, and girlfriend.

“After the immigration hearing, I said I had faith in British justice,” Boothroyd said. “Obviously I was mistaken because it’s a totally ludicrous decision. We have a young man here who pays his taxes, has a fiancée and a newborn son and somebody thinks it’s a good idea to send him back to Sierra Leone. We’ve been sent a document with the reasons why he’s being deported and they are ridiculous.

“We are appealing and I only hope that, rather than these pen-pushers, someone higher up – perhaps the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, herself - can look at it and make a decent decision. We are trying to drum up support from the relevant people who we hope can help.”

In a sport in which a defensive error or 1-0 defeat can be described as “tragic”, Bangura’s tale offers a timely reality check. At 15, he was trafficked from Sierra Leone and sought refuge here as an unaccompanied minor.

If Bangura has to return to his homeland, he fears that his life may be under threat from the Soko tribe, of whom his late father was once head. His refusal to take over its leadership after his father’s death was, Bangura says, the reason that he left the country in the first place. It is also unlikely that he would be granted a UK work permit because he has yet to play for Sierra Leone, which is ranked outside the top 100 nations in world football.

“Al has escaped two civil wars and his father was killed in a civil war,” Boothroyd said. “But he managed to get a lucky break by being scouted by this club, who could see that he had massive talent. He thought his life had changed for the better and everything had settled down, and now he’s been told that he’s got to go back.

“You put faith in the system but, very often, it comes back to haunt you. We hope that common sense will prevail and Al can stay in the country. He is part of our family now and will be a big player for us. He’s having to be consoled and is in a state of shock.”

As well as the Home Secretary, Watford hope to enlist the support of Lord Mawhinney, the Football League chairman and a former Shadow Home Secretary. Iain Moody, the club’s head of football operations, said: “The Home Office will shortly initiate moves to remove Al from the country and, as such, we have instructed our legal advisers to begin preparing an appeal.”

Bangura, who is under contract at Vicarage Road until June 2010, has not played for the Coca-Cola Championship leaders since August because of injury. He made his debut, at 17, in April 2005 and made 16 appearances as Watford were relegated from the top flight last season.

“This is about more than football now,” Boothroyd said. “This is about a young man’s life and one who has had some unbelievably nasty things happen to him. He then had a chance to be a good role model, but someone seems to think that it’s a good decision to send him back to play on pitches of rubble against teams we’ve never heard of.”

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