Everton have banned reporters from The Sun from attending the club's matches and their training ground following columnist Kelvin MacKenzie’s comments regarding midfielder Ross Barkley.

On Friday, MacKenzie compared Barkley, who is of Nigerian descent, to a 'gorilla' after the youngster was attacked in a Liverpool nightclub earlier this week.

Mackenzie, the newspaper's editor between 1981 and 1994, made several other disparaging comments against Barkley and the city of Liverpool in his weekly Sun column. He has since been suspended by the newspaper, who apologised for causing offence and claimed to be “unaware of Barkley's heritage”.

Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Hillsborough disaster: in pictures The overcrowding at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Supporters are crushed against the barrier as disaster strikes before the FA Cup semi-final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest played at the Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Severe overcrowding resulted in 96 Liverpool fans losing their lives PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Advertising boards which were used as stretchers, are piled up following the overcrowding at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures A young Liverpool fan sat pitch side, following the events of the Hillsborough disaster, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Liverpool memorial service was attended by 3,000 people PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Liverpool footballer Dalglish and his wife Marina at the memorial service in the catholic Metropolitan Cathedral in Liverpool, in memory of those killed in the Hillsborough disaster, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Floral tributes are left by the goal at Hillsborough, April 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures John Aldridge laying a floral tribute, Anfield, 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures A woman being comforted as she kneels by floral tributes at the gate of the Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield, the morning after ninety six Liverpool fans died from injuries suffered in the fatal crush at the ground PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Former chief superintendent David Duckenfield in 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher tours Hillsborough stadium with David Duckenfield (on her left) after the Hillsborough football disaster Rex Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Fans gathering at Anfield for a ceremony of remembrance following the Hillsborough disaster on 22 April 1989 PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Diana Princess of Wales talks to Liverpool fan and Hillsborough survivor Ian Clarke, 16 in Sheffield Hospital PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Sadness engulfs Anfield and the Kop Stand as many hundreds of thousands of tributes are laid in memory of the 96 people who died at Hillsborough Stadium on 15 April 1989 at the FA Cup Semi Final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Liverpool Manager Kenny Dalglish watches in anguish as dead and injured Liverpool fans are carried away in ambulances (Getty Images) Getty Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Supporters pay their respects after the Hillsborough disaster at Anfield in Liverpool, 1989 Getty Hillsborough disaster: in pictures People help soccer fans at Hillsborough stadium after support railings collapsed during a match between Liverpool and Nottingham forest PA Hillsborough disaster: in pictures Policemen rescue soccer fans at Hillsborough stadium after support railings collapsed during a match between Liverpool and Nottingham forest Getty Hillsborough disaster: in pictures 96 victims of the Hillsborough disaster

In a statement released on Saturday, Everton announced that The Sun would no longer be permitted to report from “all areas of the club's operation”, though they chose not to reference MacKenzie by name.

“Yesterday Everton Football Club informed The Sun newspaper it was banned from Goodison Park, the USM Finch Farm training ground and all areas of the club’s operation,” the statement read.

“Whilst we will not dignify any journalist with a response to appalling and indefensible allegations, the newspaper has to know that any attack on this city, either against a much respected community or individual, is not acceptable.”

In the column, MacKenzie claimed Barkley's eyes make him “certain not only are the lights not on, there is definitely nobody at home,” then added: “I get a similar feeling when seeing a gorilla at the zoo.”

MacKenzie continued: “The reality is that at £60,000 a week and being both thick and single, [Barkley] is an attractive catch in the Liverpool area, where the only men with similar pay packets are drug dealers and therefore not at nightclubs, as they are often guests of Her Majesty.”

Merseyside Police opened an investigation into MacKenzie's comments on Friday after receiving a complaint from a member of the public. Joe Anderson, the mayor of Liverpool, also reported MacKenzie to the police for a "racist slur" against Barkley.

Barkley has a Nigerian grandfather and was eligible to represent the country in international football, but opted to play for his nation of birth. The 23-year-old has made 22 appearances for England to date and was named in Roy Hodgson's squads for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 European Championships.

Earlier this year, Everton's cross-city rivals Liverpool banned The Sun from reporting on matches at Anfield and attending the club's training ground due to its coverage of the Hillsborough disaster.

Four days after the tragedy, in which 96 people were unlawfully killed, MacKenzie's Sun claimed that Liverpool supporters “picked pockets of victims” and “urinated on brave cops”.