The wife of Everton defender James Tarkowski has strongly defended her husband following a barrage of “pathetic and disgusting” death threats.
Tarkowski, aged 32, faced criticism after a contentious challenge on Liverpool player Alexis Mac Allister during Everton`s 1-0 defeat in the Merseyside derby. The incident occurred on Wednesday.
During the first half of the game, Everton`s captain made a forceful sliding tackle to clear a loose ball, inadvertently catching Mac Allister high on the leg.
Despite a VAR review, referee Sam Barrott only issued a yellow card to Tarkowski. The official considered the tackle “reckless” but not deserving of a red card.
However, officials from the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) later stated that the challenge should have been deemed serious foul play. They admitted that VAR official Paul Tierney was incorrect in not recommending a review for a potential red card.
Samantha, Tarkowski`s wife, revealed the extent of the abuse, stating that her husband had been subjected to death threats.
In an explicit outburst on her Instagram, she expressed her frustration: “I wasn`t going to comment as we usually ignore it, but no, f*** it.”
“The level of abuse directed at my husband – death wishes, vile comments about me, about us, and about him personally – is beyond disgusting.”
“People forget that he is not just a footballer. He is a husband, a father, a brother, a friend, and importantly, the father of our two children.”
“He goes out to work and does his job exceptionally well, yet he faces so much hate. For those suggesting he intentionally tried to injure someone – are you serious?!”
“Football is fast-paced, and tackles happen in a split second. No player aims to injure another, and no player feels good if they do.”
“But the hateful messages, the threats? That`s deliberate. That’s on you. Football is a sport, but the behaviour of some so-called `fans` is disgraceful.”
“The abuse, the threats – it`s not passion, it`s pathetic. We are real people, and this goes beyond football.”
Everton Football Club has also released a statement condemning the threats as “unacceptable” and offered to assist the police in any investigation.
Tarkowski himself disclosed that he apologised to Mac Allister for the tackle, saying: “It wasn`t a good challenge. I spoke to him and apologised because it wasn`t a great tackle.”
“When the ball came between us, I anticipated a strong 50-50 challenge, but he pulled out, and as I lunged, I followed through and caught him quite high. I apologised, and he accepted it.”
“Yes, not my best moment.”
Despite receiving a favourable decision regarding his tackle, Tarkowski criticised VAR for not intervening on an alleged offside against Luis Diaz before Diogo Jota`s winning goal.
Tarkowski argued that Diaz`s offside position behind him influenced his decision to lunge for the ball, leading to a poor touch that allowed Jota to score.
He explained: “I didn`t realise [Diaz] was offside, which made me lunge for the ball. He affected my decision. For some reason, they decided to award the goal, which is strange.”
James Tarkowski and Samantha began dating in 2015 and married in 2023.
The couple recently appeared in Amazon Prime Video`s new series, which follows the lives of footballers and their partners.
In the show, Samantha gave a playful answer when asked about her favourite activity with her husband.
In one episode, during a wedding party, when asked, “What`s your favourite thing to do together?” Samantha jokingly inquired about the show`s broadcast time before exclaiming “shagging!” as they both laughed.
She further added, reminiscing about their early days, “Do you remember when we were younger and we used to get into bed, and I`d say `this is my favourite part of the day`?”
“Just getting into bed at the end of the day, just us two. And then shagging. But I do quite like it…”
Later, Samantha humorously admitted, “I got some that night!” while discussing Tarkowski being named Everton captain.
