English soccer star in trouble over ‘Yid’ jibe

Soccer player Emmanuel Frimpong faced criticism after using the offensive term “Yid” on the Internet.

Ghanaian-born Frimpong, who plays for London-based Arsenal, is recovering from a knee injury sustained in a recent game. On Sunday the player tweeted for fans to pray for him at church as he is unable to attend himself.

A fan of arch-rival team Tottenham Hotspur, which traditionally has strong support from a large local Jewish community, replied “I prayed you break your arms and legs.” The outraged Frimpong responded by calling the fan a “Scum Yid,” the Daily Mail reported.

Frimpong, who holds a British passport, removed the tweet shortly afterwards but not before Arsenal and Tottenham fans began spreading it over the Twitter social networking site.

One response, which Frimpong retweeted, ran: “You can’t go around wanting players to break limbs, no matter who you play for. embarrassed to be a yid right now!”

The terms “Yid” and “Yiddo” are offensive slang in Britain for Jewish people. Both monikers are used to describe Tottenham fans in the sometimes less-than-politically-correct world of soccer supporters

The Britain-based Football Association made no comment on the incident. Arsenal said Frimpong had been “reminded of his responsibilities.”