Pedro Porro has come under heavy fire from Martin O’Neill for his decision to issue a public apology to Tottenham supporters following the club’s recent defeat.
Tottenham Hotspur fans are no strangers to receiving apologies from their players, especially in the aftermath of demoralising defeats.
Last season, there was a whole catalogue of apologies given how poor Spurs were, having lost 22 games in the Premier League during a dismal campaign.
The defeat to Nottingham Forest at the weekend brought about a similar response, with Pedro Porro sending a message of apology to the Tottenham faithful during his post-match interview.
Martin O’Neill slams Pedro Porro apology after Tottenham defeat
This is not the first time such an address has been made by a Spurs player, with Guglielmo Vicario previously issuing one after Tottenham’s defeat to Fulham.
Following Pedro Porro’s apology to the supporters, former Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill had a few choice words for the Tottenham full-back while speaking on talkSPORT, accusing him of simply trying to curry favour with the crowd.
“That’s a total ingratiation to the fans of himself to the fans that’s what that is,” O’Neill said. I’ll tell you something now, I can imagine these things existing sometimes when Brian Clough [was managing].
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“And I have been hopeless in a game and he has just told me I’ve been hopeless in a match and then me going outside and going on social media and saying the fans deserve better than that.
“No, they deserve better from your performances (Porro) mate and you get a grip of yourself. I hope he’s including himself in that group of players who didn’t play so well…players, they’ll do your brain in!”
Simon Jordan questions modern player culture
Porro’s comments have also not gone down well with Simon Jordan, who was alongside O’Neill in the studio.
The former Crystal Palace owner discussed the wider phenomenon of social media communications and suggested that the right-back’s apology is merely a symptom of the society football has created.
“We’ve got the society we’ve created,” Jordan said. Are we objecting to the fact that they say in a press conference or a post-match interview to some gurning reporter from the BBC or Sky News or doing it on social media?
“What is the problem? We want people to turn around and speak to them. If they turn around and say nothing the media will criticise them for saying nothing.
“If they turn around and not acknowledge the fans I mean what is this all about going over and applauding fans?
“What is this all about winning individual games and taking a team photograph? What is this all about walking onto a pitch and shaking the opposition’s hand before a game? What is all that about?
“It’s a modern construct of how football should be played and it’s part of the culture we’ve created so we can’t criticise it.
“We’ve told players they are highly worthwhile individuals that are very important in what they say. So when they say what they say, we criticise them for it.”
Jordan continued by addressing the reaction to poor performances directly, arguing that players cannot pick and choose when they accept feedback from the stands.
“What he said the other day about the Spurs fans I thought was wrong. Because he turned around and said I’m not having it.
“Who are you to say that? The reason why you got booed is because you were crap. You don’t hear anybody say, I’m not having that praise …you don’t hear that do you. That’s my issue with it.
“We’ve created a culture and a society where people are expected to apologise and when they don’t they are castigated.”
