- Last week, fake quotes attributed to Eni Aluko were shared on social media
- Aluko threatened legal action, prompting apologies from several accounts
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Several football accounts have issued public apologies to ITV commentator Eni Aluko after he was threatened with legal action for faking quotes that went viral on social media last week.
Quotes attributed to Aluko, 37, claimed the pundit had said women should play in the Premier League.
The post shared on social media read: ‘Eni Aluko on women’s football: Women have shown that they are more than equal to men’s football.
“Just look at our amazing Lionesses, they put the men’s team to shame. Our girls should be given a chance in the men’s Premier League, they could easily hold their own.”
Aluko responded on X with screenshots of the posts along with the message: ‘Accounts that use fake quotes with my name and image will be contacted and subject to legal action.’
Eni Aluko (pictured) has threatened legal action against several social media accounts for faking quotes and attributing them to her.
Quotes attributed to Aluko claimed she had said women should play in the Premier League.
Aluko said she was willing to take legal action and tagged several football accounts.
She also tagged three accounts – @FootballFunnnys, @fsmofficialTW and @BeWarmers – in her response to the fake quotes.
All three accounts have since apologized for spreading fake quotes.
BeWarmers wrote on Instagram: ‘My apologies to Eniola Aluko as we misquoted her during the week with a fake quote we saw online. Keep up the good work in the world of football.’
FootballSoccerMeme issued its own statement, which read: ‘We apologise to Eniola Aluko as we misquoted her during the week with a fake quote which went viral and was seen on many other pages. Keep up the good work in the world of football.’
In a separate post by X, FSM also wrote: ‘We apologize, we immediately removed @EniAlu.’
FootballFunnnys posted on X: ‘Hi @EniAlu, we are very sorry. We have immediately removed the offensive post.’
Aluko reposted FootballFunnny’s apology along with the response: “I appreciate the public apology. Great lesson to the fans in the comments with a neuron among them dissing my name: don’t get emotional. It usually ends in tears for the fools who think they can get away with it.”
The former England star also posted his anger on another social media account: @FootballFactly.
Aluko requested that the post be removed and a public apology be issued from a social media account, but the post remains on her account and no apology has been issued on X.
‘@FootballFactly: You have almost half a million followers and you’re dumb enough to post fake news/quotes.
“This should be removed immediately and replaced with a public apology to avoid legal action.”
The post remains on Football Factly’s X account and a public apology has yet to be made on social media.
Aluko also made headlines earlier this year after former player Joey Barton compared her and fellow commentator Lucy Ward to serial killers Fred and Rose West.
Barton was charged with alleged “malicious communications towards Aluko” in July but pleaded not guilty when he appeared at Warrington Magistrates’ Court the following week.
Barton is now due to face trial next year.
Aluko also sparked controversy in April when she claimed that UK stadiums were “not safe for women”.
She insisted it was not safe for women to travel to stadiums or online, but her comments received backlash from some women who claimed Aluko “does not speak for me or my family.”
Aluko has worked as a pundit for ITV for a number of years and has been part of their coverage of recent editions of the men’s and women’s World Cups, as well as Euro 2024 earlier this summer.