Ex-Shrewsbury Town player Moses Ashikodi punches fan in 'row over stolen mobile phone'

The striker, who has also played for Millwall, Rangers and Watford, was filmed hitting the fan at a Three Bridges match in Crawley, West Sussex - but his club claims it was self defence.

The footage appears to show the 30-year-old striker - a sub for Bridges - hit the man in the face.

The owner of the phone, who filmed the altercation, shared the video of the punch on Twitter before it was removed.

He also posted a second video that shows a scuffle involving fans just beforehand.

Regarding the punch, Three Bridges FC have claimed Ashikodi acted in self-defence after he was grabbed by an "assailant", and that "drunken" fans called the Bridges player a "cheat".

In a statement, a spokesman for the club said: "We did hear that Dulwich Hamlet fans had for some reason come along to support Eastbourne.

"Most fans seemed boisterous but alcohol got the better of them and they started to abuse Bridges players, notably goalkeeper Brannon Daly who was only playing because normal keeper Kieron Thorp was in Las Vegas.

"Then, armed with two very noisy drums, they decided to camp right by the Bridges dugout in the second half and many were trying to confront the manager and his coaching team.

"At the end of the game they let off smoke bombs behind a goal and then headed towards the tunnel where they decided to call a Bridges player a cheat when he had earlier fallen to the ground during the game, an incident that resulted in an Eastbourne payer being sent off.

"This was what sparked a fracas which seemed to be being settled until a guy grabbed the Bridges No. 16, Moses Ashikodi, round the neck, prompting him to retaliate by punching his assailant."