Leeds fans react on Twitter to Ladbrokes trolling Burnley duo Wood and Taylor
By Harry Sykes
Ladbrokes have apologised to Burnley for a social media message which contained a rude gesture towards Chris Wood and Charlie Taylor – and Leeds United fans thought it was hilarious.
Wood and Taylor predictably came in for abuse from some fans of their former club Leeds when the sides met in Tuesday night’s League Cup clash at Turf Moor.
But after Leeds won a penalty shootout 5-3 to advance to the last 16, the pair were also the target of “very poorly conceived tweets” from Ladbrokes, even though the bookmakers are Burnley’s official UK betting partner and sponsor the Cricket Field Stand at Turf Moor.
One message posted on the official Twitter account of Ladbrokes was addressed to Wood and Taylor, followed by an image of a raised middle finger and the words: “Yours sincerely, Leeds fans #LUFC.”
Leeds fans took great delight in the message, claiming that the betting company’s social media duty editor on Tuesday night was clearly a fan of their club.
Many described it as just “banter”, with some claiming United should hire the Ladbrokes representative to run their own social media account.
Here is a selection of their messages on Twitter:
In a statement, Ladbrokes said: “They were very poorly conceived tweets which we have since deleted. It was only intended to be a bit of fun but failed completely in that regard, and we have apologised to Burnley FC and would like to sincerely apologise to any fans of the club that took offence.”
Burnley boss Sean Dyche had been disappointed to hear Wood and Taylor “get slaughtered” by Leeds fans at Turf Moor after their switch from Elland Road in the summer.
Wood scored twice from the penalty spot after coming off the bench, once in normal time to help force a 2-2 draw and again in the penalty shootout.
Taylor played the full 120 minutes of the cup tie after struggling to get a look-in during league fixtures.
In other Leeds United news, a 26-year-old Monk mainstay is fighting for his Elland Road career after recent developments.
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