Zouma taunted by Newcastle fans as West Ham held to damaging draw

LONDON: Kurt Zouma was taunted by Newcastle fans who jeered the West Ham defender and waved inflatable cats at him during Saturday's (Feb 19) 1-1 draw at the London Stadium.

Zouma was back in the spotlight after the France international pulled out of last weekend's draw at Leicester, having fallen ill just minutes before kick-off.

Newcastle supporters showed no mercy to the 27-year-old, who was making his second Premier League appearance since a video emerged that showed him kicking and slapping his pet cat.

Zouma was fined two weeks' wages by West Ham and dropped by his personal kit supplier Adidas.

The former Chelsea centre-back issued an apology but his behaviour was strongly condemned across the football world.

Despite the outcry, West Ham boss David Moyes chose to play Zouma against Watford immediately after the video went viral.

Moyes insists Zouma deserves a second chance, but he was loudly booed by Newcastle fans throughout the match, while the inflatable cats added a surreal touch to the taunting.

West Ham fans have created an unsavoury chant in support of Zouma, but Newcastle's 3,000 travelling supporters responded by singing: "Hey, Hey Zouma, I wanna know, how you kicked that cat."

On the pitch, there was more bad news for West Ham as they were booed off after their bid for a top four finish in the Premier League suffered a blow.

Craig Dawson put the Hammers ahead but Joe Willock's first goal this season earned Newcastle a point in their fight for survival.

West Ham remain fifth, one point behind Manchester United having played a game more.

Newcastle stay fourth bottom, having moved five points clear of the relegation zone with a sixth successive unbeaten league game.

With rain lashing down, Declan Rice failed to deal