Eni Aluko says Ian Wright’s rejection of apology ‘greenlit further abuse’

Eni Aluko says Ian Wright’s refusal to accept an apology from her last year “greenlit further abuse”, and admitted she felt “gaslit” by social media comments from ITV presenter Laura Woods earlier this week.

Aluko had told the BBC’s Woman’s Hour last April that Wright and other male pundits risked blocking the pathway for female counterparts.

Aluko subsequently apologised, but Wright said at the time he could not accept it and wanted to move on.

She told talkSPORT on Tuesday: “I can only tell you that I made a comment about football and his name came up. I appreciated that it was the wrong thing. I apologised and I hoped that he would accept my apology.

“Unfortunately, when he didn’t accept my apology, it greenlit further abuse, and that’s been difficult to deal with for the last nine months.”

Aluko also told talkSPORT that ITV bosses told her Wright was “the priority” when it decided not to renew her contract at the end of the men’s Euros in 2024.

Woods appeared to take aim on Monday at comments made by Aluko last week where she highlighted that two of the six main panel pundits for last summer’s Women’s Euro final were men.

Aluko told the 90s Baby Show that left herself and Fara Williams as “290 (caps) sitting in the stands” and called for an effort to “gatekeep” women’s football for women, in the same way she argued the men’s game had been gatekept for men.

Woods posted on X: “Caps don’t win automatic work and they don’t make a brilliant pundit either. The way you communicate, articulate yourself, do your research, inform your audience, how likeable you are and the chemistry you have with your panel are what makes a brilliant pundit.

“If you want to grow something, you don’t gate keep it.”

Asked about Woods’ comments