Manchester City's Ederson denies supporting Tommy Robinson
City star Ederson insists he does "not support this guy or his ideas" after a picture of him with Tommy Robinson appeared online.
Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson has strongly denied a suggestion he endorsed Tommy Robinson after a photograph of the player with the British far-right political activist circulated on Twitter.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, announced last week he will stand as a candidate in the north west region of England in this month's European parliamentary elections, despite facing a prison sentence of up to two years in an ongoing court case.
The picture of Ederson posing with Robinson was posted by Twitter user Danny Tommo, who describes himself as "Working with Tommy Robinson" in his biography on the social networking site.
"Tommy Robinson meeting city's [sic] golden boy @edersonmoraes93 last night, has his full support while in Manchester," he tweeted on Tuesday.
Ederson: "I had no idea who he was (do not be a liar)"
Brazil international Ederson was unequivocal in his response, which appeared to call Tommo "a liar" after declaring he had "no idea" who Robinson was.
"People have made me aware of who this guy [Robinson] is," he tweeted. "I definitely [do] not support this guy or his ideas. He just stopped me for a picture. I had no idea who he was (do not be a liar)."
Robinson himself is unable to directly contribute to the exchange, having been permanently banned from Twitter last month for falling foul of the website's rules on "hateful conduct".
Ederson was named in the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Team of the Year last week and has proved a key performer in City's bid to secure a domestic treble.