Following the cup victory against RWE, RWO defender Drew Murray gave the Essen block the middle finger twice. This could have repercussions.

Rot-Weiß Oberhausen caused a major upset with a 3-2 win in the second round of the Niederrhein Cup against third-division side Rot-Weiss Essen.

In the end, it was a game on a knife edge. RWE scored late to make it 2-3 and had great chances to equalize in the final minutes. After the final whistle, the Kleeblätter erupted with joy at their derby victory and their place in the round of 16, where they will now face Oberliga side VfB Homberg. Oberhausen’s 19-year-old defender Drew Murray, on loan from SC Freiburg, lost control of his emotions for a moment. He posed with his back to the Essen fans and gave the RWE supporters the double middle finger. It was an unnecessary provocation that has now also brought the FVN (Lower Rhine Football Association) onto the scene. According to information obtained by this editorial team, the association is investigating the American player. The Rot-Weiß Oberhausen club has been contacted and asked to comment. The incident has also been dealt with internally. RWO officials pointed out to the player that this behavior was unacceptable, even though Murray himself is said to have been provoked several times over the 90 minutes. When asked by this editorial team, Marcus Uhlig, CEO of Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, said: “Due to the ongoing proceedings, I don’t really want to comment on this. Suffice to say, we have spoken to Drew. He has credibly assured us that he was insulted several times beforehand. Nevertheless, he knows that he overreacted with this gesture and could have harmed himself and the club.”

Especially since the US talent had no need to present himself in this way, as he had played a really good game himself beforehand. He was involved in the 3-1 goal and defensively prevented Essen’s attacker Jannik Mause from developing his game. Instead of celebrating his success, however, he now has to make sure he gets out of the game without a penalty.