Bernardo Silva posted a picture of Manchester City teammate Benjamin Mendy, comparing him to the controversial mascot of Spanish chocolate brand, Conguitos.
Silva published the ill-judged photo on Sunday afternoon, a day after Pep Guardiola's side destroyed Watford 8-0, Silva himself bagging a hat-trick in the process.
Mendy made his Man City return after another injury lay-off, but the news surrounding the Frenchman will be focussed on the photo which his Portuguese teammate publicly shared on Twitter.
Bernado Silva did an oopsie
— 햴헓햺헂헋 gbeng (@CFCUzair) September 22, 2019
BTW I'm sure that's supposed to be Mendy pic.twitter.com/rNEsAGjRUj
Silva compared a photo of the France International as a child with the brand logo of chocolate confectionary company Conguitos with the caption 'Guess who?' followed by a couple of laughing emojis.
Conguitos, a brand popular in Spain and Portugal but not in the UK, is often the subject of criticism over its insensitive logo.
Mendy responded to the Man City midfielder's tweet by brushing off any harmful intent, apparently laughing at Silva's comparison.
1-0 for you will see
— Benjamin Mendy (@benmendy23) September 22, 2019
The original tweet received some heavy criticism in the comments section regarding a lack of cultural sensitivity and racist connotations on Silva's behalf, and the former Monaco star deleted his tweet and responded to the backlash.
Can’t even joke with a friend these days... You guys... 臘♂️
— Bernardo Silva (@BernardoCSilva) September 22, 2019
It wasn't the first time that the pair have been involved in a media storm. Silva previously posted a video on his Instagram story mocking Mendy, saying he'd 'just seen a World Cup champion completely naked', before greeting the Frenchman who was dressed all in black.
Bernardo Silva smh. pic.twitter.com/4zruQJ0CmL
— usman (@usman_94_) September 22, 2019
Racism has become a topic of deep discussion within the footballing world in recent times, with many of the world's stars suffering abuse from the stands and on social media platforms such as Twitter.
Source : 90min