Dundalk's Nathan Oduwa thanks teammates for support after suffering vile online abuse

Nathan Oduwa has thanked his Dundalk team-mates for their support after he was subjected to ‘vile’ online abuse.

The English winger missed a penalty and won another one in last week’s Europa League defeat to Rapid Vienna at Aviva Stadium and was targeted on social media.

Dundalk issued a club statement the following day saying it would take a zero tolerance approach to racism and discrimination.

And some of the Lilywhites players swiftly backed the club’s stance with their own individual social media messages of support.

In Norway tonight ahead of tomorrow’s clash with Molde, ex-Spurs man Oduwa claimed he hadn’t seen the abusive messages himself.

But he said: “The support means a lot and shows how strong we are as a team and as a club.

“I didn't see the incident posted online, but the way the players backed me online and in interviews was amazing.

“It shows how strong we are as a team and I can't thank them enough.”

But on the pitch, Oduwa is in no doubt that Sunday’s FAI Cup final against Shamrock Rovers is a bigger game than their penultimate Europa League clash.

“It does seem strange saying that but it's understandable,” he added.

“We’ve a big game against Rovers, who are a good side and we really want to win that game.”