Eni Aluko flees the country after being left 'scared for safety' following Joey Barton abuse
17 January 2024, 09:27
Eni Aluko has revealed she has fled the country after being left 'scared for her safety' due to abuse she has suffered following Joey Barton's derogatory comments about her punditry.
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Barton likened Aluko and her fellow ITV pundit Lucy Ward to serial killers Fred and Rose West as he embarked on a rant about female commentators in the men's game.
Aluko was also compared to dictators Joseph Stalin and Pol Pot.
The former England footballer revealed this week she had left the country in fear of her safety after Barton's comments provoked a torrent of social media abuse.
Anuko, speaking from outside the UK, said she fears abuse could lead to a female pundit taking her life.
“Now, I’m open and honest and I’m human and I’m more than happy to admit that I’ve been scared this week,” she said in an Instagram post.
“I’ve genuinely been scared this week. I didn’t leave my house until Friday and I’m now abroad," Anuko went on.
"It’s really important to say that online abuse has a direct impact on your safety and how you feel and how safe you feel in real life.
“I’ve felt under threat this week. I’ve felt like something is going to happen to me."
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Anuko went on: "And I don’t say that for anyone to feel sorry for me – I say that for people to understand the reality and the impact that hate speech has, the impact that racism has, the impact that sexism has, the impact that misogyny has on all of us females in the game, in sports broadcasting.
“That’s the real impact – and it’s not an isolated incident, this is now showing up as a culture in the game, from certain fan bases and certain people.
“They’re creating a culture where people don’t want to go to work, people don’t want to leave their house, people feel under threat. Obviously there’s a big impact on mental health as well.”
Barton, who has launched a series of sudden tirades about female pundits in recent weeks, replied to Anuko's comments: "Cry me a f*****g river. I was waiting for the victim card to be played.
"Eni, sorry luv, you're dreadful as a pundit. Tone deaf, can't count and most importantly you know next to nothing about men's football.
"You should have ran off to a desert island after your 'Arteta phoning Pep to put a bid' in nonsense. Everyone is laughing at you. Not just me."
Sports minister Stuart Andrew previously vowed to intervene with social media platforms following Barton’s “dangerous comments” about female football commentators.
“These are dangerous comments that open the floodgates for abuse and that’s not acceptable," he said.
“I’m slightly wary that these sort of people want the oxygen and I don’t want to fuel that.”
