Out of favour Manchester United player Marcus Rashford has not taken kindly to a tabloid aiming to publish a photo of the striker appearing alongside a convicted murderer.
According to reports, Rashford had posed for a photo with a rapper and convicted murderer recently.
The 27-year-old has fallen way down the pecking order for United since new coach Ruben Amorim took the reigns.
Rashford has also been linked with a move away from the Premier League to AC Milan during the January transfer window.
“Been contacted today by a tabloid informing me that they plan to publish a photo of me with a rapper apparently taken over a year ago,” said Rashford in a statement on Instagram.
“I want to make it clear I have never seen this photo, I do not know this person and I am not friends with him. Like most footballers if someone asks for a photo with me, I will never refuse but I am obviously not able to do a background check on every individual that asks me for a photo.”
“My deepest sympathy goes to the family of Jimmy Mizen.”
Mizen, 16, was killed in a knife incident by rapper Jake Fahri in 2008. Fahri was convicted of murder in 2009 and sentenced to 14 years in jail.
Recently released after serving his term, Fahri has dived back into his music career.
This is not the first time Rashford has been pictured with a controversial musician, after he and teammate Jesse Lingard posed with MC Wiley in 2002. Wiley had been banned from Facebook and Twitter for anti-semitic comments as the time.