Twitter video shows Arsenal fans aiming homophobic abuse at Ashley Cole
By Ryan Love
A video showing Arsenal fans aiming homophobic abuse at Ashley Cole has been posted online.
The clip, first shared on Twitter, shows a large group of Arsenal fans gathered before their team played Reading at Wembley Stadium yesterday (April 18).
You lot were great! Again! Let’s do it once more shall we?
— AwayBöyz Singer (@SingerAwayBoyz) April 18, 2015
Sung to the tune of Lily Allen’s ‘Smile’, one lyric heard in the footage is: “Ashley Cole is a Chelsea batty boy.”
The video’s uploader defended the footage, writing on Twitter that it was only a “bit of fun and a singsong”.
Comments in response included: “That’s actually pretty f**king disturbing”, “Nothing like a bit of casual homophobia before the big game. Embarrassing”, and “Imagine how the genuine, normal Arsenal fans feel when they see stuff like this.. Absolutely embarrassing”.
Cole, who was once married to Cheryl Fernandez-Versini, joined Chelsea from Arsenal in 2006.