Crystal Palace defender head-butted by Núñez gets ‘400’ death threats
Liverpool say they condemn in the “strongest possible terms” the abuse aimed at Andersen and are willing to work with both Palace and the police.
Crystal Palace are expected to report to the police the “3-400” death threats Joachim Andersen and his family received in the wake of Darwin Núñez being sent off for headbutting him.
The Crystal Palace centre-back posted a series of screenshots on Instagram of messages directed at him in the aftermath of Monday’s 1-1 draw at Anfield.
Andersen and Núñez had become embroiled in a running battle during the game, with Núñez headbutting his rival in the 57th minute as tempers flared.
The Uruguay striker, signed from Benfica in the summer for an initial £64 million, was immediately shown a red card by the referee, Paul Tierney.
One of the messages to Andersen said: “F*** you, I will kill you, you and your family” and the 26-year-old Denmark international wrote: “Got maybe 3-400 of these messages last night. I understand you support a team but have some respect and stop acting tough online.”
The defender has asked the social media company and the Premier League, which has an online abuse reporting system, to look into the matter. Anfield officials are also aware of the messages.
Liverpool say they condemn in the “strongest possible terms” the abuse aimed at Andersen and are willing to work with both Palace and the police.
“Our position on such matters is unequivocal — no player, whether our own or those of any other club, should have to be confronted by such abuse. We will work with Crystal Palace and the relevant authorities to take swift and decisive action against those responsible.
“In this instance, we offer our full support to Joachim, his family and our colleagues at Crystal Palace. This unacceptable behaviour has no place in football or society.”
The Liverpool manager, Jürgen Klopp, warned Núñez that he must learn from the incident, with the 23-year-old having become increasingly frustrated by the treatment meted out by Andersen.
“The whole game I sat really close to him, I annoyed him a lot and did well against him,” Andersen said. “I think that’s why he was a little bit angry with me.
“In that situation, he headbutted me, the first one, at a cross, and I told him he shouldn’t do that.
“I was angry with him. Then he did it again which is, for me, really stupid. A clear red card.”
