Dele Alli apologises for Snapchat video that mocked coronavirus outbreak and Asian man

Tottenham midfielder says he ‘let myself down and the club down’ after joking about the deadly virus outbreak that has spread worldwide

Dele Alli has apologised for posting a video on Snapchat in which he joked about the coronavirus outbreak and appeared to mock an Asian man.

The England and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder quickly deleted his video on Saturday, and on Sunday expressed his remorse via a video on Chinese social media platform Weibo.

There have been more than 900 confirmed deaths from the outbreak in China, with the number of cases exceeding 40,000 worldwide, including four confirmed cases in the United Kingdom.

The UK has declared coronavirus a “serious and imminent threat to public health”, which gives the government additional powers to fight the outbreak. A British man who caught the virus in Singapore also appears to be linked to at least seven other confirmed cases in England, France and Spain.

Yet in posting the video, Alli admitted he had let himself and Spurs down, with the midfielder issuing a contrite statement on Sunday to apologise.

"Hi guys, it's Dele; I just wanted to apologise on my behalf for the video I posted on Snapchat yesterday," the 23-year-old said.

"It wasn't funny and I realised that immediately and took it down. I let myself down and the club.

"I don't want you to have that impression of me because it wasn't funny and I realised that straight away and took it down.

"It isn't something that should be joked about. I'm sending all my love and all my thoughts and prayers to everyone in China."

Tottenham are currently on their Premier League winter break, with their next fixture a trip to Aston Villa on Sunday, 16 February.

PA