Laura Woods criticized Eni Aluko on Monday after he doubled down on his views on male pundits in a series of social media posts, but the former England forward subsequently responded
Eni Aluko hits back at Laura Woods’ comments (Image: talkSPORT)
Eni Aluko has accused Laura Woods of gaslighting after the ITV and TNT Sports presenter said her recent comments were “setting women’s public opinion back”.
Former England international Aluko came back into the spotlight over the weekend after calling for “tight control” on women’s football, accusing male critics, including former Arsenal forward Ian Wright, of hindering opportunities in women’s football.
Aluko, 38, first began her feud with Wright in April last year, facing criticism for claiming she needed to realize “how far I’ve come in the women’s game.” Aluko, who scored 33 goals in 105 games for England, suggested Wright had made it more difficult for female pundits to find a place in the industry. She later apologized, but Ms Wright said she was “disappointed” by her remarks and did not accept her behavior.
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read more: Eni Aluko reveals why ITV ‘ignored her in favor of Ian Wright’read more: Eni Aluko hits back at Laura Woods, claims Ian Wright says controversy becomes personal
Mr Woods then directed his ITV colleagues at the X show in a series of posts on Monday morning, after Mr Aluko reiterated his stance on male critics. Woods said Aluko’s comments “will not only set women’s sports back, but will set back women’s professionalism in all forms of competition.”
Reacting to these, Aluko admitted he felt “gassed” by Woods’ latest comments.
Appearing on talkSPORT on Tuesday morning, Aluko said: “I respect Laura’s opinion and always have. I think it would be helpful for her to outline the qualities that you consider to be a good pundit.”
“As I explained, the cap (number of) is obviously part of it. The cap is not the decider, but it is an objective way of saying that the person has enough experience to talk about this particular game.”
Eni Aluko speaking on talk SPORT on Tuesday morning (Image: talk SPORT)
“It was interesting because Laura was one of the people I always went to see. We got along like the house was on fire and I went to ask her how she thought things were going.
“Laura, consistently…and I saw a message yesterday and thought, ‘Wait a minute, I’m feeling a little gassy here’…Laura has consistently said to me, ‘I think you’re a great broadcaster and critic.’
“So I think you should respond to her argument a little bit at this point. I respect that and she disagrees and that’s fine, but I think there’s an insinuation there that you’re not up to the mark. I’m trying too hard for people and just because you don’t see me on screen you just conclude that you’re not good enough. That’s not true.”
talkSPORT presenter Jim White referred to the “gaslit” comment, but Aluko quickly backtracked somewhat and replied:
“She talked about the importance of little boys in the women’s game today and I agree with that.
“If you look at the little boys who come to women’s games now, they have women’s names on the back of their shirts and no male pundits’ names.”
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