Arsenal tell squad social media posts on the Hamas terror attacks could cause upset or anger among their global fanbase
|Arsenal have been prompted to warn their entire squad about the potential backlash they and the club could face after two of their players used social media to offer support to both Israel and Palestine, according to the Telegraph.
Clubs across Europe have maintained a public silence so far amid the Hamas terror attacks.
Jewish supporters organisations for Arsenal released a statement on Wednesday, criticising football’s silence around the Hamas terror attacks and urging governing bodies, organisations and clubs to offer their public sympathy and respect.
The Gunners midfielder and Egypt international Mohamed Elneny has changed his Twitter and Instagram avatars to a Palestine flag, while Ukraine international defender Oleksandr Zinchenko posted a message on Instagram that read ‘I stand with Israel’ before later deleting it.
The North London club are yet to order either player to delete their messages or replace their avatars, but have told their squad that any social media posts on the subject could cause upset or anger among their global fanbase.
Football clubs are often wary about interfering in politics and similar subjects given that they have fans across several countries on the planet.
Arsenal are not ready to take sides this time around either and they want their players to keep their opinions to themselves.
Zinchenko quickly deleted his post from earlier this week and it remains to be seen whether Elneny will follow suit.
The Gunners would also likely prefer if the players do not bring the subject into the dressing room as it could cause tensions when players start taking sides.