Arsenal sponsor, the Lavazza Group, is holding urgent talks with the club after midfielder Mohammed Elneny posted his support for Palestine.
Tensions continue to escalate between Israel and militant groups in Gaza.
Elneny, who is from Egypt, has posted on Twitter saying: “My heart my soul, my support for you Palestine.”
His message went out to almost 5m followers but has resulted in a backlash from Arsenal ’s Jewish fans because his post included an image called “Palestine Lives Matter” which featured an outline of Israel filled with pro-Palestine images.
Tal Ofer, who is part of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, sought a response from Arsenal’s sponsor.
The Lavazza Group has released a statement saying: “We’ll immediately reach out to Arsenal to remark we are concerned about the club associated with such a message.
“Content of this post is totally not aligned with our company values. Lavazza Group is fully committed against racism and antisemitism.”
Ofer also attempted to contact Adidas but they have not responded whilst also taking aim at Arsenal.
He said he was “sad that Arsenal did not want to deal with this more seriously, I would expect better from them than this.”
Ofer called on the FA to suspend the midfielder for his actions.
The Gunners have defended their player telling the JC : “As with any employees of Arsenal, our players are entitled to express their views on their own platforms.
“That said, we are speaking to Mo about this so he understands the wider implications of his post.
“As a club we are committed to confronting and eliminating all forms of discrimination and continue to champion the need for equality and diversity across all areas of life.”
