7 Times Footballers Landed Themselves in Hot Water With Social Media Posts

Footballers of the past must breathe a sigh of relief when they reminisce about the thoughts and opinions that they didn't have the platform to share back in the day. 

Nowadays, footballers are trained on how to use social media, what to write, when to write it and how to avoid confrontations with supporters. This doesn't stop players from slipping every now and again, or dropping a social clanger or two. 

Manchester City star Bernardo Silva caused a Twitter storm this week, after posting a controversial picture comparing a young Benjamin Mendy to the face of the 'Conguitos' confectionary brand, a Spanish chocolate. 

We take a look at other times footballers should have thought before pushing 'send'.

Joleon Lescott

This one's a personal favourite. 

Football fans aren't stupid. We know that footballers earn insane sums of money and live luxurious life-styles, but we don't like having it rubbed in our faces by players who are are not giving their all for our team. 

Well, that's exactly what Joleon Lescott did in 2016. With Aston Villa eight points from safety and on the receiving end of a 6-0 battering at the hands of Liverpool, Lescott took to social media to give his sincere apologies to his supporters. 

Ah no, he just posted a picture of his swanky Mercedes. 

In fairness to the ex-Manchester City man, he did apologise for his ill-judged tweet. Kind of. Lescott claimed he sent the tweet accidentally from his pocket whilst driving. 

Okay then, Joleon. 

Bernardo Silva

I know what you're thinking. 'Silva already got his mention in the intro, right?' It wasn't the Portuguese star's first offence though.

Silva posted a very controversial video telling his viewers that he was about to meet a 'completely naked' Mendy, but when the Frenchman arrived he was dressed in black clothing. 

Not a good look for Silva. 

Darren Bent

Player power has become a prominent issue in football nowadays, with individuals downing tools, refusing to train or play and taking to Twitter to voice their displeasure. 

Maybe Darren Bent was the trailblazer for this modern day tactic. The Tottenham Hotspur striker was up for sale, and keen on a move to Sunderland. Spurs chairman Daniel Levy was trying to boost the numbers in the sale and offered the English striker to a number of clubs. 

Bent was not impressed, and he let the world know about it. 

The former Ipswich striker got his move, and the power of social media was becoming more and more evident to the new generation of footballers. 

Maybe we have Bent to thank for that. Cheers, Darren. 

Victor Anichebe

It'd be silly of us to assume all footballer's are savvy when it comes to social media, and it's encouraging that players pay advisors to help them avoid the traps that exist on the internet. But Victor Anichebe gave all supporters a peek behind the curtain during his time at Sunderland. 

Judging by the tweet, and by common sense, we can assume Sunderland lost this match, and the big striker was keen to raise the spirits of the Wearside faithful. Unfortunately, Anichebe forgot to delete the opening line 'Can you tweet something like'.

Classic mix-up.

Wayne Hennessey 

Crystal Palace goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey made a real fool of himself during this series of events. The Welshman was pictured in a team photo making a nazi salute, but then denied making a nazi salute. Hmmm. 

To make matters worse, the shot-stopper then claimed that he didn't realise that his pose was racist, and led to this immortal headline:

Unbelievably, the Palace man got away with his actions and his horrendous excuse, but the terraces will never forget. 

Wayne Rooney

Footballers get a lot of abuse online, whether they deserve it or not. Our heroes must bite their tongue when they read some of the insults they receive, but sometimes they can't stop themselves from fighting back. 

No one knows exactly what flipped Rooney's switch, but England's highest goalscorer reacted badly and threatened to put a follower to sleep. 

The only problem was, the Manchester United legend forgot to tag the abuser, and appeared to be arguing with himself. 

Oh Wayne. 

David Gold

A special mention for a football club owner. 

As a football fan, you like to know that your owner has their finger on the pulse, and is heavily involved with the ins and outs of your club. David Gold wants to be that man, but occasionally falls short. 

When West Ham signed Pedro Obiang in 2015, Gold tweeted to announce the new purchase and welcome his player to the side. The only issue was, he tweeted a picture of Angelo Ogbonna, another Hammers player. 

This is why social media exists.