Video: Liverpool caught up in yet another racism row

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQuZZlUMSVo

With the furore over the Luiz Suarez scandal rumbling on and on, Liverpool were caught up in yet another racism scandal after victory over Oldham in the FA Cup last night.

The Reds ran out comfortable winners over the League One outfit (hell, even Andy Carroll and Stewart Downing managed to get on the scoresheet), but the victory was marred by the alleged racial abuse suffered by young Oldham defender Tom Adeyemi at the hands of a Liverpool supporter.

20-year old Adeyemi was visibly shaken by an incident that occurred ten minutes before the end of the game at Anfield, when he became embroiled in a row with two Liverpool supporters in front of the Kop. The supporters were believed to have been wearing the Luis Suarez t-shirts that caused such uproar when the Liverpool players donned them in support of their teammate ahead of a game against Wigan last month.

After the game, Adeyemi gave a statement to Merseyside police in which he is believed to have claimed he was racially abused twice by a supporter.

One eyewitness reported two fans confronting Adeyemi and said: "I was to the right of the Kop and the No11 turned to walk away after a tackle. I heard a single voice shout, 'You f**king black b**tard.' He spun round with shock on his face and started pointing at the crowd, from where the shout had come."

Adeyemi was in tears after the incident and had to be restrained by his teammates as well as some Liverpool players, including captain Steven Gerrard, and referee Neil Swarbrick. Unable to keep his emotions in check, he was subsequently booked for a wild challenge on John Flanagan.

Merseyside police said that arrests had been at the game, but none in relation to the alleged racial abuse of Adeyemi, who is on loan at Oldham from Norwich City. A statement was released last night which read: "Merseyside police can confirm that no one has been arrested this evening on suspicion of racially aggravated behaviour during tonight's FA Cup fixture at Anfield.

“However, the force and Liverpool Football Club are investigating following an incident that occurred during the second half of the game. The aim of the investigation is to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident to ascertain if any action needs to be taken."

The club are to conduct a full investigation into the incident and also released a statement, saying:

"An incident occurred in the second half of the match which is now being investigated by both the club and the police. We will continue to work closely with the police to establish the details of what actually happened and will make a further statement in due course."

After the game, Oldham manager Paul Dickov said that Adeyemi’s reactions on the pitch to what had happened were completely out of character and praised the Liverpool players for their role in attempting to calm him down.

The incident could not have come at a worse possible time for Liverpool, who have attracted plenty of criticism in recent weeks for the way they have handled the Luis Suarez case.

For more on the Adeyemi story, check out the video above.