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A Wolverhampton Wanderers fan has appeared in court after allegedly racially abusing former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand and directing homophobic slurs at referee Mike Dean.
During Manchester United's 2-1 win over Wolves at the Molineux Stadium back in May of 2021, Jamie Arnold allegedly called Ferdinand a 'f***ing monkey' and Dean a 'f***ing gay boy'. While Ferdinand was covering the contest as a pundit for BT Sport, Dean was officiating the match.
Arnold was ejected from the venue by police after stewards were alerted by several other supporters at the stadium. He pleaded not guilty to the charges last August and has been out on bail ever since.
Ferdinand discussed the incident on air, saying (via Daily Star):
"It's pleasing and refreshing that it's been taken so seriously but I'd love to meet up with the fella and educate him a little bit. Punishing people without education isn't the way forward."
Prosecutor Jason Arris said the following on the incident(via Daily Star):
"Mr. Ferdinand was aware of a group of supporters who were shouting rather enthusiastically at him. Mr. Ferdinand noticed this defendant was focusing all of his attention on him, he was giving hand gestures and jumping up and down and misbehaving himself. Mr. Ferdinand, being the professional that he is, chose to ignore this behavior."
He continued:
"The defendant was pointing towards the direction of the Billy Wright Stand where Mr. Ferdinand was stood. This defendant put his hands underneath his armpits and started to jump around where he clearly tried to imitate and mimic a monkey. It was clearly intended to be racist."
"People who were at the match heard this defendant shout, 'Rio you f****** monkey.' Supporters who witnessed this were appalled, they were disgusted by the defendant's behavior."
Rio Ferdinand wants to see Danny Welbeck back at Manchester United
Rio Ferdinand has urged Manchester United to sign Brighton Hove & Albion striker Danny Welbeck to solve the striker crisis at Old Trafford. Speaking on his YouTube channel Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE after Red Devils' 2-1 loss to the Seagulls, he said:
"Danny Welbeck walked out of that tunnel and you could see, shoulders back, chest out, thinking – 'I will terrorize these two [Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire].' That’s how he played today, he looked like prime-time Danny Welbeck at the Bernabeu against Real Madrid 10 years ago."
"If you want a backup striker, you wouldn’t go far wrong with Danny Welbeck. It gives us the legs, gives us the movement – the running behind defenders like he did today and it frees up the space for the likes of Bruno."
Welbeck, who is in his second season at the Amex Stadium, spent six seasons at Manchester United between 2008 and 2014 before leaving for Arsenal. He registered 29 goals and 21 assists in 142 appearances across all competitions for his boyhood club.
