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Leeds has condemned the online abuse targeting Karen Carney after a tweet from the club questioned her comments as an expert.
Carney said Leeds “outdid” opponents and a forced layoff during the football break during the Covid-19 pandemic helped their promotional momentum last season.
The Women in Football Group said Leeds’ tweet was “inappropriate.”
The club’s owner, Andrea Radrizzani, had defended the tweet, but the club said it “completely condemns” any abuse Carney has received on social media.
“Karen is highly respected by everyone at our club for all that she has accomplished in the game, as well as for her work in the media and the charity work that she does,” the Premier League club said.
Carney, who won 144 games for England, made his comments during Tuesday’s Amazon Prime broadcast of Leeds’ 5-0 victory over West Brom in the Premier League.
Football in the UK was on hold between March and June due to the coronavirus pandemic and Carney, 33, said of Leeds: “They outnumber everyone and give them credit. My only concern would be if they would explode at the end of the ¿ season?
“We saw that in the last few seasons. In fact, I think they were promoted by Covid in terms of it giving them a little breathing space. I don’t know if they would have gotten up if they hadn’t had that break.”
Leeds won the championship by 10 points in 2019-20. They won seven and drew one of their nine championship games when soccer resumed in June after the initial Covid-19 lockdown. They had won six and drawn one of their nine games before the lockout.
Leeds’ tweet that shared images of Carney’s comments tagged the Amazon Prime account, for whom she works as an expert. Former player Rio Ferdinand was one of those who asked the club to remove the post, which has been retweeted 11,500 times.
Others in the media said the tweet was inflammatory and invited criticism of former Birmingham, Arsenal and Chelsea winger Carney on social media.
Tennis commentator David Law tweeted: “Do you really need to tweet something like this and invite a group?”
French journalist Philippe Auclair wrote: “Posting such a tweet on an official club account was already questionable, to say the least. Keeping it there when your target is being abused by your tweet is simply wrong.”
Radrizzani, responding to a tweet saying that Leeds should be “ashamed” of their actions, wrote: “I take responsibility for the club’s tweet.
“I consider that comment [from Carney] completely unnecessary and disrespectful to our club and in particular to the fantastic work of our players and coaches. “
The group Women in Football tweeted: “Whether you agree with the comment or not, flagging and ridiculing a person on an official club account is not what we are here for. Karen Carney is a well-informed expert. This tweet it’s provocative and inappropriate. It doesn’t look good now or at any time. “
Brighton defender Ben White, an ever-present loan officer at Leeds last season, shared images of Carney’s comments alongside ‘laugh’ emojis.
Leeds’ victory over West Brom lifted them to 11th place in the Premier League with 23 points from 16 matches.
Only six newly promoted teams in Premier League history have won more than Leeds’ seven at this stage of the campaign.
