Footballers past and present have tweeted messages of support to Jack Grealish after the Aston Villa midfielder was attacked by a pitch invader against Birmingham.
A spectator in a flat cap entered the field of play before throwing a punch at the visiting captain, before being restrained by stewards and led away by police.
😡 – "An absolute disgrace!" A fan has run onto the field and attacked Jack Grealish from behind. pic.twitter.com/PI1Wf3qXfP — Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) March 10, 2019
Grealish was able to continue, and the football community rallied around him on social media.
"Abhorrent. Well done @JackGrealish1 for keeping his cool," Gary Lineker tweeted.
Abhorrent. Well done @JackGrealish1 for keeping his cool. https://t.co/nyhLoZJHa5 — Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) March 10, 2019
Former Villa forward Marlon Harewood was another who applauded Grealish for his restraint, posting: "What an absolute disgrace! What an idiot! Well done Jack Grealish for not reacting to such a disgusting act!"
😡🤬 What an absolute disgrace! What an Idiot! Well done Jack Grealish for not reacting to such a disgusting act! — Marlon Harewood (@Mazer_9) March 10, 2019
Meanwhile, former Liverpool player Luis Garcia acknowledged the example the England under-21 player set for children watching.
"Well done Jack Grealish. Many kids are watching and players have to behave. After that situation not easy to stay calm," he wrote.
Well done Jack Grealish. Many kids are watching and players have to behave. After that situation not easy to stay calm. Supporters to support !! #nottoviolence https://t.co/sYUV4rxdIg — Luis Garcia (@LuchoGarcia14) March 10, 2019
Stoke City midfielder Charlie Adam responded to the incident by expressing his concern for the safety of the players.
In a game between Rangers and Hibernian on Friday, Gers captain James Tavernier found himself face to face with a fan who had leapt from the East Stand to confront him.
Twice in three days we've seen players attacked by supporters, what is going on? Football needs to stamp this out quickly. Only a matter of time before someone is seriously hurt. — Charlie Adam (@Charlie26Adam) March 10, 2019
Bournemouth's Harry Arter, meanwhile, tweeted that he hoped to see Grealish score the winner after the incident, and he was not to be disappointed, the 23-year-old scoring the game's only goal in the second half.
Would love to see grealish to score the winner !! — Harry Arter (@HarryArter2) March 10, 2019 It's all over. @JackGrealish1 scores the winner in the Second City Derby at St Andrew's, as we complete a league double over Birmingham! Get innnnnnn. 👊#PartOfThePride pic.twitter.com/pETixaOpM5 — Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) March 10, 2019
Birmingham condemned the attack as "deplorable and disgusting" and Press Association Sport understands the club will apologise to Grealish personally.
It is also believed the Blues will take the strongest possible action and ban the man for life from St Andrew's.
ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Max McLean, Press Association');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', 'd67991cf-afcb-44ce-85b8-813d232ace46');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:football,paservice:viral,paservice:viral:sport');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story-enriched');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Footballers rally around Jack Grealish on social media after pitch invader punch'});
