Bayern Munich’s management announced that they would impose "a heavy fine" on winger Franck Ribery following uproar over his aggressive social media response to commenters slamming him for an extravagant dinner.
"I had a long talk with Franck and I let him know that we would impose a heavy fine on him and he accepted it… He used words that we, FC Bayern, cannot accept and that Franck does not have the right to use, as a role-model and player of FC Bayern", sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic said.
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The manager explained Ribery’s outburst by saying that the player and his pregnant wife, his child and his mother, who is in hospital, had been “slandered and insulted".
“Franck wanted to defend himself and defend his family. He has the right to do that. I support him in that, but unfortunately, he totally lost control", the club’s official said, pointing out that the player did not have to pay the bill for the infamous golden steak that prompted the avalanche of criticism in Germany.
The player of the German Bundesliga’s champion team, whose annual salary reportedly reaches 8 million euros, faced public backlash after he posted a video from his visit to celebrity Turkish restauranteur Salt Bae’s steakhouse. The football star is seen rubbing his hands while the host cuts a gold-coated steak.
No better way to start the year than with a dash of salt and a visit to my Turkish brother 🇹🇷👌🏼 #SaltBae #fr7👑 #ELHAMDOULILLAH🤲🏽♥️ pic.twitter.com/O5ztj4mueq
— Franck Ribéry (@FranckRibery) 3 января 2019 г.
Following a social media storm of criticism, he wrote several outraged posts on Twitter and Instagram.
"Let's start with the envious, the angry, surely born because of a broken condom. F*ck your mothers, your grandmothers and your whole family tree", one of them read in French.
— Franck Ribéry (@FranckRibery) 5 января 2019 г.
However, he did not stop there, going on to slam the media for its attention to his private life.
“As for the pseudo-journalists who have always been negative about me and my actions, if I donate (because I've been taught to give if I have a lot) then why does not a single major national outlet report about it?" he posted.
This is not the first time that Ribery has been lambasted for his behaviour. In November, he attacked French TV reporter Patrick Guillou after the defeat against Borussia Dortmund, whose criticism seemed unjust to him. However, he apologised afterwards.
"Of course it was wrong what I did, it's always difficult after a game because I was very emotional, I apologised to Patrick and his family”, Ribery explained.
