“Clearly he had drunk too much.”
Northern Ireland and Oxford United winger Gavin Whyte is set to be reprimanded by his club after leaked footage emerged showing him performing a “lewd” sex act on the street. Oxford United have confirmed they will meet the player to discuss the matter.
The footage, which has been widely shared on social media, emerged after Oxford’s 2-2 draw with Joey Barton’s Fleetwood Town side on Saturday.
It shows two men, one of whom is believed to be Whyte, walking down a street in Belfast with their trousers around their knees and their genitals exposed.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland are now said to be “conducting enquiries” over the lewd act.
Whyte made his Northern Ireland debut in September and has been in impressive form for The U’s since joining from Northern Ireland Football League Irish Premiership side Crusaders in the summer.
Both Oxford and Whyte’s international manager Michael O’Neill have issued warnings to the 22-year-old with regards to his behaviour. United boss Karl Robinson commented:
“Gavin is a quiet, respectful young man who is totally devastated by this. I have rarely heard anyone so remorseful for something that he regrets and knows he shouldn’t have done.
“Clearly he had drunk too much, and we will deal with that too, but whether you are a footballer or not that sort of behaviour is wrong on every level. We will sit down with Gavin today and we will remind him in no uncertain terms of his responsibilities.”
Michael O’Neill said, “I know that Oxford United will discipline him appropriately for this significant mistake and both his club and the Irish FA will put in place measures to make sure that he learns from it.”
