Marca, Spain’s best-selling newspaper, has claimed that Tottenham are ‘disliked’ for their Jewish origins.
The comments were made in a preview of the North London club’s Champions League meeting with Real Madrid this week, and have prompted a strong response from Spurs.
The preview claims that Spurs’ ‘Jewish heritage has historically made them into a club disliked by rival fans’, adding that the club has always had ‘style and great players’.
From Spain: Tottenham an enemy, hated by fans around the country, Jewish connection a reason. #THFC #COYS https://t.co/bFG6TC19nN pic.twitter.com/uAxGeR2C7x
— Sport Witness (@Sport_Witness) October 16, 2017
It also adds: ‘Since its beginnings, the club has had an undeniable connection with the Jewish community represented in directors, coaches and players. And the current owner and president, Joe Lewis and Daniel Levy, are Jewish.’
In response, a statement from Tottenham has condemned Madrid-based Marca, describing the article as ‘blatantly wrong and wholly distasteful’:
‘We are astonished that a publication such as Marca, which presents itself as an alleged source of professional journalism, has seen fit to publish such an article which is blatantly wrong and wholly distasteful.’
