New Delhi: Arsenal’s manager Mikel Arteta has condemned the social media abuses directed towards Kai Havertz and his wife after the Gunners exited the FA Cup following a loss at the hands of Manchester United in the shootout penalty. Earlier, Sophia Havertz had shared Instagram stories where she posted threats to her and even her unborn baby she received through Directive Message.
She captioned the screenshots noting that the online abusers should be “ashamed” of their activity. When asked about the abuses before the Arsenal Tottenham Hotspurs game, Arteta responded with a call for “eradication” of such behaviour from the game. He continued that this was all “cynical”. Arteta further said that there was a need for a strong response as ignoring these types of abuse could lead to “terrible consequences”.
🚨 Mikel Arteta on Kai Havertz and the horrible, unacceptable abuse he/his partner suffered after the game. 👏🏻@BeanymanSports 🎥 pic.twitter.com/CdXMyA2Qde
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 14, 2025
Mikel Arteta takes a stand for Kai Havertz
Arteta maintained that the football industry was stand-alone when it came to such abuses. Arteta pointed out that during their 1-0 win over Ipswich Town a few weeks ago where Havertz scored, the stadium was giving their loudest cheer to Havertz. The Spanish manager felt that the abuse also comes from the narrative that is spun by media and everyone was responsible for such abuses.
The 42-year-old further felt that while one can accept it as a hazard of the job they are in, Artet felt that it had affected everyone around Havertz including himself. This is why Arteta felt that everyone should know the limit. With all the technology that is coming in football, Arteta felt that the need of the hour was that such incidents don’t occur.
Arsenal had already notified data science company, Signify about the events from the weekend and has since been investigating the abusers and if found, there will be strong actions taken. Arsenal has been in collaboration with Signify since 2021 in order to protect players, officials and fans of the club from all kinds of online abuse and hatred.
Back in 2023, they were able to identify 18 Arsenal members who had been sent abusive and threatening messages online and which were ultimately banned by the club. Arteta felt that everyone needed to support “individuals” who were going through tough times.
Over the years, Arteta has been known for supporting Havertz a lot, with German internationals often being thought to be one of the best No. 9s in Europe. Though Havertz initially had struggled in Arsenal coming from Chelsea in 2023 but ended with 14 goals in his debut season across competitions. Arteta noted that there are very few other than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi who have better-expected goals than Havertz.
Kai Havertz’s wife yesterday had shared threatening online messages sent to her and her unborn child which Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta condemned ahead of game with Tottenham. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
