The mayor of Liverpool has condemned a newspaper article about Everton midfielder Ross Barkley as "racist and prehistoric".
Barkley, 23, was punched in a Liverpool bar last weekend in what his lawyer described as an "unprovoked attack".
Sun columnist, and former editor, Kelvin MacKenzie has compared Barkley to a "gorilla at the zoo".
Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson said he has reported the article to the police for a "racial slur".
One of Barkley's grandfathers was born in Nigeria.
Merseyside Police confirmed they were investigating the "full circumstances" of the "racial hate crime" allegation about "comments written about a third party".