Emmanuel Adebayor has issued an apology to the Arsenal fans after he ran the length of the pitch to celebrate in front of them while playing for Manchester City in 2009.
Emmanuel Adebayor has apologised
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Adebayor was given some rough treatment by the Gunners’ faithful for his decision to leave the club for City and netted twice for his new club in a 4-2 win. However, it was his celebration for his first goal that caused consternation as he sprinted towards the away fans before sliding on his knees in an act that police described as inciting the crowd in a negative fashion.
The Togo striker escaped with a two-game suspended ban for improper conduct, but was banned for three games for violent conduct as he stamped on Robin van Persie’s face in the same game. Now at Arsenal’s arch-rivals Tottenham on loan, Adebayor is set to face his old side again in the North London derby this weekend and has attempted to diffuse a volatile situation before it begins.
“What happened two years ago was an accident and I do apologise to all the fans of Arsenal. Sometime the emotions, we cannot control them, we are all human beings,” Adebayor told talkSPORT. “I regret what I have done and I say sorry to everyone but at the end of the day sorry doesn’t change anything. For me it’s over.
“I’m looking forward to playing against Arsenal again on Sunday but believe me, if I have a chance to score, trust me I will score but as for the celebration, never in my life will I do something like that again.
“It will be a funny game [on Sunday], it’ll be fantastic. I have a chance to play against Arsenal again, the club that gave me the chance to be where I am today. I have a huge respect for the club.”
Adebayor has scored three goals in three games since joining on loan from City and admits that he is enjoying himself at White Hart Lane.
“I’m having a good time at training every day,” Adebayor said. “We’re having a big laugh and I find myself already in the squad as if I have been playing for Tottenham for ages.
“We defend together and we attack together. We have a lot of good players, Gareth Bale, Benoit Assou-Ekotto and Luka Modric, they’re all fantastic players.”