GLASGOW Rangers player Joe Aribo has sparked a social media spat after appearing to bless himself upon scoring a goal on Sunday.
The Nigerian-born midfielder, who joined the Scottish Premiership side earlier this year after signing a four-year deal, opened the scoring against Livingston FC in a match that ended 2-0.
The 22-year-old appeared to bless himself repeatedly during the goal celebrations, which has raised eyebrows due to the team's traditionally strong loyalist following on both sides of the Irish Sea, and the religious gesture being a largely Catholic practice.
One Twitter user wrote: "Joe Aribo immediately ruins Remembrance Sunday for so many #Staunch Rangers fans by blessing himself after scoring."
However, many Rangers fans also used the incident to insist that the team was becoming more welcoming to those of other faiths and cultures.
One Twitter user, who describes himself as a Rangers fan and "proud British and Scotch unionist", wrote: "The man has the right to his faith. Bigots can bloody lose themselves from Ibrox."
Another Rangers fan tweeted: "If your (sic) offended by Aribo blessing himself then your no (sic) a Rangers fan. Those days are gone."
The Old Firm club has faced accusations of sectarianism among fans following a number of incidents in recent years.
In October, the club criticised a video of Rangers fans singing songs on a bus, mocking the skin cancer deaths in 2008 of Celtic FC icon Tommy Burns and the sister of Celtic captain Scott Brown.
In August, Uefa ordered Rangers to close a section containing around 3,000 seats during a Europa League clash with Polish side Legia Warsaw due to "sectarian singing" and "racist behaviour" at a previous fixture between the two teams.
A "diversity and inclusivity" campaign, titled 'Everyone Anyone', also launched earlier this year with the aim of tackling sectarianism.