Former Lioness Eni Aluko has given her first interview since her return to our screens as an ITV pundit, opening her heart on the search for love and Ian Wright comment fallout
In a wide-ranging interview, former Lioness Eniola Aluko has opened her heart on her legal win over Joey Barton after his social media posts, the fallout from her Ian Wright remarks, her search to find love, consulting police over her social media security concerns and her shock at finding dating app users fear she is catfishing them.
It was in April that Aluko, 38, was victorious in the first round of her defamation fight against Barton following his offensive posts on X. A judge at the High Court ruled the posts had a defamatory meaning. She attracted support across the board for her determination to stand up to the trolls that had intimidated others into silence.
The former Chelsea and England international is now back in the punditry chair with the Lionesses in action at the business end of the Euros. Aluko’s Hyphenated People podcast – a series of interviews around heritage, travel, storytelling and culture – also launches this week. She willingly leads from the front herself by addressing her comments which sparked a fall out with national treasure Wrighty back in April.
During an interview to discuss the defamation win and opportunities for women in football broadcasting, Aluko appeared to question the Arsenal legend and her fellow ITV pundit’s place in the front line. Wrighty received widespread support from fans, pundits and players past and present for the work he has done and continues to do in that space.
Aluko accepts she was wrong to spotlight the former Match of the Day pundit who has, for many years, been a fierce public and private advocate for women’s football. She told The Mirror : “I think I could have done better in responding to the question I was asked, and just keeping it as a general issue.
“I’ve always been the person, to be honest, to hold my hands up and say: ‘Listen, I got that one wrong. That was, that was a mistake.’ If I had been on the other end, I would probably have felt the same Apologies are acts of respect. Apologies are a show of humility. I did a lot to try to apologise to Ian privately. So when you’re seeing a public apology, it’s actually the last resort. But it was a public forum that I spoke about him on, and I felt a public apology was important.”
Wrighty publicly declined to accept Aluko’s social media apology but Aluko remains determined to ensure her mea culpa is as loud as the upset her comments caused. “I respect that. I respect how he feels,” she added. “it’s really about my apology. That’s all I can do. Then, whenever the person’s ready to have a conversation, I’m ready to have a conversation. But I respect if it’s not the right time, I totally respect that.”
Aluko scored 33 international goals in 102 appearances for the Lionesses before retiring in 2020 and moving onto a career in broadcasting. It is 11 years since she became the first woman to appear as a pundit on Match of the Day. But while the landscape is changing, female broadcasters are still forced to endure abuse on social media, relating to their TV and radio performances. Aluko struck back in April with the first stage of a High Court libel claim win against Barton, who was this week ordered to pay Jeremy Vine legal costs of £200,000 following their libel battle.
“The way to change some of these things in society where women are made to feel they don’t belong in certain spaces is always to speak up about it,” she said. “That’s the only way you change it. If you bury your head in the sand and pretend like it’s not happening, nothing really changes.”
Aluko revealed she had to contact the police after personal abuse on social media in general led her to be mindful of her safety. She went on: “The police have been helpful. They understand the impact that online abuse is having in the real world. It’s not unique to me, but it’s the reality, unfortunately. It does affect how people treat you in real life. One of the reasons why I love traveling is the anonymity that comes with it. You can meet new people, have a conversation on the plane, and the person has no idea who you are – and doesn’t judge you for what’s on social media or whatever.”
Aluko is coy when asked whether she has a romantic travelling companion – before admitting she is single and open to finding a partner and settling down. She said: “I always wonder whether I’m going to meet someone because I find it hard. I find it hard dating as a high profile woman in the UK. I really do find it hard just because a lot of guys come with preconceptions or, if they’re an Arsenal fan, it becomes a whole conversation about Arsenal v Chelsea. And I’m like: ‘I don’t want to talk about football on this date!”
“The amount of dates I’ve been on, and it becomes an interview!” She laughed. “So I actually consciously try and date people who don’t like football and like something else.”
She laughed off our suggestions she is under gentle pressure from her family to settle down now that she is in her late thirties. But she also revealed she was suspected of being Catfish – someone who sets up a dating profile under a fake name – when she created profiles on a number of apps.
“I’ve had some good experiences and I’ve had some tragic, terrible experiences,” she said. “I’ve tried online dating apps. They don’t work for me. A lot of people think I’m a catfish, a fake account! Which is odd, because you’ve got to verify yourself!
“But yes, I have found it challenging. People are like, ‘Are you real? Are you?’ Breeze (dating app) is pretty good because there’s no chatting. They just set you up on a date. That’s good because I hate the small talk bit. I don’t want a pen pal! So maybe the old school way of meeting someone is my way – at an event, or, as I said, travelling. Keep your fingers crossed for me!”
Asked whether she’d go on to TV show Celebs Go Dating for help finding love, she went on: “I actually did get asked to go on but I chickened out because I am quite private. But I am trying to find love and it’s difficult. I just have this feeling that maybe I’ll meet someone on my travels, rather than here.”
Aluko would, however, be open to other forms of reality TV: She went on: “It depends what it is, right? I’d be a bit scared of Strictly because it’s sort of intense even though my dancing is okay. But anything that requires you learning something new, I’d be up for. I love cooking. Also Celebrity, SAS, that sort of show “Anything that’s quite physical too, that will push my limits.”
In the meantime, Aluko is the latest in a number of stars, including Richard Branson and men’s footballer Eberechi Eze, hooked on chess. “I’ve needed something to calm me down,” she said. “I’ve been collecting chess boards made abroad and that’s how I got into chess and started playing.
“I’m part of two chess clubs in London now and I try to go and play as much as I can. I’m seeing quite a lot of young people get into it, and I’ve come up against some very, very strong chess players, so I’m still learning. Put it that way!”