Wesley Sneijder apologises to Leeds United fans for promoting Galatasaray knives

By Pascal Lemesre, Football League EditorPublished: 04 April 2015 11:45 AM

Galatasaray midfielder Wesley Sneijder says that he is "very sorry" after promoting a knife set 15 years after two Leeds United fans were stabbed in Turkey.

Dutch international Wesley Sneijder has apologised to Leeds United fans for promoting a Galatasaray knife set on the 15-year anniversary of two fans being stabbed in Turkey.

Leeds will have a minute's silence before this afternoon's Championship match with Blackburn Rovers to mark 15 years since the deaths of supporters Christopher Loftus and Kevin Speight at a UEFA Cup match in 2000.

Supporters of the Yorkshire side were enraged when they saw Sneijder promoting a Gala-branded knife set which carried his image.

The Wesley Sneijder knife set

PA quotes a Leeds spokesperson as saying: "It would be disappointing to see this on any day but especially this weekend when we have a number of tributes planned out of respect for the fans who went to watch their team and never came home."

Sneijder was subject to a number of furious replies and responded to @Leedsu1Ross on Twitter.

"Very sorry," he wrote. "I didn't know this and deleted our promotion for the merchandise kitchen item. #Respect."

Ali Umit Demur was found guilty and jailed for 15 years for the deaths of Loftus and Speight.