Former Hibs, Hearts and Man Utd player in hot water over I'm a Celeb tweet

A former Hearts and Hibs player has landed himself in hot water over a message shared on X that appeared to weight shame I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! contestant Nella Rose.

The 26-year-old prides himself on being 'a footballer with a view' and is not afraid to share his opinions on social media. Demetri Mitchell spent two loan spells at Hearts between 2018 and 2019 while a Manchester United player and later spent a year from January 2022 to January 2023 at Hibs, having completed a transfer from Blackpool.

The full-back, who is now a regular at Exeter City in League One, is clearly a fan of the hit ITV1 reality show and has been sharing his thoughts on the series so far. Reacting to a clip where podcaster and influencer Nella refused to eat breakfast after a fall-out with TV star Fred Sirieix, Mitchell wrote: "Nella not eating dinner. I'm a celeb going to be good for her."

The footballer faced backlash for the message and soon deleted the post on X, going on to share messages of support for Sirieix, who he tipped as a potential King of the Jungle.

Mitchell made just 10 appearances for Hibs during his 12 months at Easter Road, scoring twice from defence, as he battled a persistent ankle injury. His time at rivals Hearts was more fruitful, where he signed for a second consecutive loan spell with 'unfinished business' after injuries hampered his first loan. The full-back racked up a total of 34 appearances for the Tynecastle side.

The star, who made one first-team appearance for Manchester United in the Premier League, told The Mirror how he hoped to break the mould for footballers by sharing his opinions online. He said: "I said to my friends and family kind of light-heartedly that I was going to change how people view footballers and how players interact with people.

Demetri Mitchell has played for Hearts and Hibs (Image: SNS Group) | SNS Group

"That was the meaning for me to voice my opinion on social media, not to just gain some followers. I strongly believe that fans will appreciate it more and even the media, being more like a regular person and less like robots. There's positives that can come out of social media - it doesn't have to be all negative and arguments.

"I feel like players, and even managers, always have the politically correct answer. I've been doing that myself for years; always thinking of the right thing to say or the correct thing to post. But then I don't feel like I'm being my genuine self. So I thought to myself, 'I'm 26 now, I'm playing at Exeter and I'm a journeyman footballer, so I've just been speaking more freely about how I view the game and how I feel."

Mitchell was also in the headlines this season for his action on the pitch. The defender played for Exeter City in the side's Carabao Cup meeting with Premier League club Luton Town, scoring the only goal in a 1-0 win. The star was also sent off shortly after netting. He is currently facing a long-term layoff with an ACL injury picked up in the side's 3-2 cup defeat to Middlesbrough in October.