Michail Antonio questions reaction to Kurt Zouma’s cat incident

West Ham striker Michail Antonio has questioned whether action by his teammate and 27 year old former Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma mistreating his cat is worse than racism.

A video emerged earlier this week of Zouma kicking and slapping his pet cat with the France defender having received a maximum fine of two weeks’ wages from his club.

Zouma has also been dropped by sponsor Adidas and his two pet cats have been seized by the RSPCA .

West Ham boss David Moyes has received criticism for selecting the 27-year-old less than 24 hours after the release of the video for his side’s 1-0 win over Watford on Tuesday.

But Zouma’s team-mate Antonio who was interviewed driving into the West Ham training ground on Thursday morning has now raised the question of whether what was seen in the video is worse than racist abuse.

West Ham’s Michail Antonio has questioned the reaction to Kurt Zouma kicking his cat, asking if it’s worse than players convicted of racism. pic.twitter.com/QchAIeXOsT

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) February 10, 2022

The club initially condemned their player’s actions after the video emerged but backed manager David Moyes’ decision to start the player for the win against Watford on Tuesday night.

Moyes has said Zouma would remain available for selection while the club’s internal investigation ran its course.

Speaking after West Ham’s 1-0 victory over Watford – in which Zouma played the full 90 minutes – Moyes said: “Yes, he will [remain available]. The club will sort the rest of it out. I’ll look after the football side.”

He added: “I’m really disappointed, and the club have taken all the action they can do at the moment behind the scenes. My job is to pick the best team and Kurt was part of that.

“I’m a big animal lover and it’s something that will have affected a lot of people.

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