Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: Arsenal captain returns to Twitter after deactivating account and criticising platform
Aubameyang returns to Twitter after deactivating his account on Tuesday; Arsenal captain said: "Got a bit too emotional last night - yesterday was a big day for football and our fans and an even bigger day for social justice"; striker sidelined for Everton game amid recovery from malaria
Wednesday 21 April 2021 16:58, UK
Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has returned to Twitter less than 24 hours after deactivating his account and appearing to criticise the social media platform.
Aubameyang deactivated his account on Tuesday night. In his final post, the 31-year-old said he had not missed Twitter and seemed to criticise the platform for no longer "talking about Covid... or online abuse or racism".
Aubameyang's full tweet read: "I ain't missed you Twitter. So we not allowed to talk about anything?
"Only football and Super League? No more talking about Covid?! Or online abuse or racism. Nice. Even Sick (without fone) I was feeling better than now with fone.
"Let me turn it off. See u."
- Thierry Henry: I'm tired of talking about racism
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- Jordan Henderson: Taking a stand no longer optional
However, Aubameyang reactivated his account on Wednesday, and tweeted: "Got a bit too emotional last night. Bottom line is - yesterday was a big day for football and our fans and an even bigger day for social justice."
His tweet criticising the platform has since been deleted.
The striker, who has missed the Gunners' past three matches as he continues to recover from malaria and will also be out for their game against Everton on Friday, is set to resume light training later this week.
Meanwhile, Alexandre Lacazette (hamstring) will be sidelined for the Everton clash while Martin Odegaard (ankle) will be assessed ahead of the match against Carlo Ancelotti's side.
Kieran Tierney (knee) is expected to return within a few weeks and David Luiz (also knee) is due to take part in training next week.
On Tuesday night, the 'Big Six' Premier League sides, including Arsenal, announced they were withdrawing from the Super League, just 48 hours after the plans were announced.
The new competition was widely condemned, with the Arsenal Supporters' Trust saying it "represents the death of everything that football should be about", while Chelsea supporters protested outside Stamford Bridge ahead of their game against Brighton on Tuesday.
Many players also criticised the proposals, with Arsenal's Hector Bellerin tweeting a picture of the club's former manager, Arsene Wenger, along with his quote: "To all the Arsenal lovers, take care of the values of the club."
Arsenal apologised to their supporters on Tuesday night for taking part in the planned creation of the Super League, adding: "As a result of listening to you and the wider football community over recent days we are withdrawing."
Tuesday also saw a verdict delivered in the trial of former US police officer Derek Chauvin, who was found guilty of the murder of George Floyd last year.
The death of Floyd, who was unarmed when he was arrested, pushed the Black Lives Matter movement into the public consciousness. Premier League players still highlight the movement when they kneel ahead of kick-off.
Aubameyang's criticism of Twitter for no longer discussing racism came after Arsenal legend Thierry Henry shut down his Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts last month, due to the platforms being "too toxic to ignore".
Championship clubs Swansea and Birmingham recently ended week-long social media boycotts, while Rangers players and staff also stepped away from their platforms in support of Glen Kamara and Kemar Roofe.
In the wake of rising levels of abuse and a number of his Liverpool team-mates being targeted, Jordan Henderson has handed control of his social media accounts to the Cybersmile Foundation, a cyber-bullying charity, and the midfielder says he may yet come off the platforms altogether.
Anti-discrimination body Kick It Out have stated they would support any Premier League-wide boycott, amid reports English top-flight clubs were considering such a move.
Instagram reveals plans to fight social media abuse
On Wednesday, Instagram said it empathises with footballers and clubs taking part in social media boycotts, in order to make a stand against online abuse.
Instagram's policy manager, Fadzai Madzingira, told Sky Sports News: "I empathise with a lot of the frustrations. I think the interesting thing with the boycotts is that in the past often boycotts are because people disagree. In this case, we are on the same side."
Instagram has now announced the rollout of a new tool that it hopes will combat online abuse. Working with anti-discrimination charities, the online platform has developed a predefined list of offensive terms and emojis.
If a direct message contains harmful content it will be filtered, so that a user does not have to view it. The feature, which needs to be activated, will be rolled out in a variety of countries in the coming weeks.
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