Arsenal defender Hector Bellerin admits he has been affected by the abuse that he has been getting either online or at the games...
Bellerin says that he has had to "grow thick skin" to be able to cope with the abuse he has been receiving for his hairstyle and his fashion style, as well as his levels of performance.
However, the right-back is determined to keep expressing himself when he plays and off the pitch.
"Some of it can get very abusive. Most of the abuse is online, but you hear it in the staium, too," Bellerin said to The Times.
"People have called me 'lesbian' for growing my hair. There are other kinds of homophobic insults. I have learnt to grow a thick skin but it can affect you. Every now and again, you get a bit of self-doubt.
"The problem is that people have an idea of what a footballer should look like, how they should behave, what they should talk about.
"You act a little differently and you become a target. There is pressure to conform. This is very dangerous. In life, you should be allowed to express yourself. People are happier like this."
The abuse has become so much that the Spanish international has been forced to delete his Twitter application from his phone.
"It can be a blessing and a curse. When I first came into the ranks at Arsenal, the expectations were very low so people were often impressed when I played well," Bellerin added.
"But then, when I played badly, the stick got crazy. The worst was a year and a half ago. A lot of people say nice things but it is natural to focus on the bad.
"For a while, I deleted the apps. Later, I decided to go back on. Twitter is a great source of information. Every day I am learning to deal with abuse in a better way."
Bellerin went onto say that he believes it is still impossible for a Premier League footballer to openly come out as homosexual.
"It is impossible that anybody could be openly gay in football," Bellerin claimed. "Some fans are not ready.
"When it happened in rugby with the Welsh player (Gareth Thomas), people respected the situation. The fans respected his decision.
"In football, the culture is different. It can be very personal, very nasty, particularly for players from the opposition team."
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