Raheem Sterling and Callum Hudson-Odoi condemned the 'unacceptable' racist abuse of England players during their five-one win over Montenegro in Podgorica. Sick, ignorant racist chanting was reportedly directed at several England players during the Euro 2020 qualifier. England's manager Gareth Southgate said that he 'heard the abuse of [Danny] Rose' and the incidents will be reported to UEFA. However, Montenegro coach Ljubisa Tumbakovic claimed that he did not 'hear or notice any' racist abuse. One or two people even believed him. Southgate, speaking to Radio 5Live, added: 'There's no doubt in my mind it happened. I know what I heard. It's unacceptable. We have to make sure our players feel supported, they know the dressing room is there and we as a group of staff are there for them. We have to report it through the correct channels. It is clear that so many people have heard it and we have to continue to make strides in our country and trust the authorities to take the right action.' After only six minutes, BBC Radio commentator Ian Dennis said that he had heard racist chants when Stottingtot Hotshots left-back Rose was in possession of the ball. Another BBC football correspondent, John Murray, also said that he heard the chanting 'throughout the game' and spoke to pitch-side photographers who described the abuse the England players received as 'disgusting.' Sterling scored England's fifth goal in the eighty first minute and celebrated by putting his hands to his ears, a gesture he later said was 'a response' to the racist abuse. In injury time Rose was booked following a strong challenge on Aleksandar Boljevic, with more racist chants aimed at the twenty eight-year-old. It is not the first time Rose has faced this situation on international duty. He was racially abused in Serbia in an under-twenty one game in 2012. Serbia's FA was subsequently fined sixty five grand, with their under-twenty one team having to play one game behind closed doors. Sterling called on football's authorities to take 'a proper stance' and 'crack down' on the racist abuse. 'A couple of idiots ruined a great night and it is a real sad thing to hear,' Sterling told 5Live. 'It's a real sad situation we are talking about after a great win. I don't think it was just one or two people that heard it, it was the whole bench. There should be a real punishment for this, not just the two or three people who were doing it - it needs to be a collective thing. This place holds fifteen thousand. The punishment should be, whatever nation it is, if your fans are chanting racist abuse then it should be the whole stadium so no-one can come and watch. When the ban is lifted, the fans will think twice. They all love football, they all want to come and watch their nation so it will make them think twice before doing something silly like that.' Describing his reaction to his goal, Sterling added: 'It was one of those where it was to let them know, you are going to need to tell me more than that we are black and what we resemble to affect us. That was the message and give them something to talk about. We can only bring awareness and light to the situation. It's time for the people in charge to put a real stamp on it. In England we have a diverse country and lots of different faces. I can only do so much; the FA can only do so much. The people in charge need to make a proper stance.' Kick it Out, the anti-discrimination charity, said: 'As we've argued countless times, it's time for UEFA to take strong, decisive action - fines won't do. Extended stadium bans or tournament expulsion are what's needed.' England had gone behind in Montenegro to a Marko Vesovic effort before goals from Michael Keane, Ross Barkley (who scored twice), Harry Kane and Sterling completed a comfortable win for England and their second five goal haul in two games. However, the talk after the game was dominated by the racist chanting aimed at England's black players and Southgate was asked about whether he should have taken England's players off the pitch. 'I'm not one hundred per cent certain that that would be what the players would want,' he said. 'There would be a mix of views, in terms of when we've discussed the topic in the past, how the players would like it to be dealt with. And they just want to play football. Of course, we have the chance to have an impact, but I don't have the answer, frankly.' He added: 'Maybe that's something I'd have to consider in the future. I have to say, it wasn't something that came to mind at the time. I would want to have a long discussion with my players before to make sure that was a course of action they felt was a) something they wanted to do and b) thought was something that was going to make a difference.' A UEFA delegate was at the game and Southgate believes the representative from European football's governing body will have heard the racist abuse. 'I'm reflecting on should I have done more?' said Southgate. 'In the end, I think I tried to protect my players as much as I possibly can. I'm not the authority on the subject. I'm a middle-aged white guy speaking about racism. I'm just finding it a really difficult subject to broach because I want my players to enjoy playing football and not be scarred by the experiences. If people feel I should have done more, then I can only apologise for that.' Moscow Chelski FC winger Hudson-Odoi, who was making his first international start, told BeIn Sports: 'I don't think discrimination should be anywhere, we are equal. When you are hearing stuff like that from the fans, it is not right and it is unacceptable. Hopefully UEFA deal with it properly. When me and Rosey went over there, they were saying, "ooh aa aa", monkey stuff and we just have to keep our heads and keep a strong mentality. Hopefully Rosey is okay too. We will discuss it and have a chat. He has a strong mentality and is a strong guy so hopefully everything will be good. It is not right at all - I was enjoying the game too. We just have to take the win and go back home.' England's Declan Rice, who was also making his first Three Lions start, was sitting next to Rose in the dressing room after the game and said that the incidents had affected everyone in the camp. 'It is clearly unacceptable and it is up to the FA and UEFA to deal with it,' said Rice. 'It is not right, we came here to play a football match, we have been respectful and they need to show respect to us. Danny was disappointed. We talk all the time about kicking it out of the game but when is it actually going to stop? It is happening all the time and there needs to be more punished for it. We need to be doing more. I don't know what else we can do, there are so many campaigns saying 'kick it out' but then you come to places like this and it happens again, you are back to the start.' UEFA subsequently confirmed that 'disciplinary proceedings' had been opened against Montenegro with one charge for 'racist behaviour.'
Cast in role of cheerleader-in-chief, Scottish FA president Alan McRae felt it 'a privilege' to announce Alex McLeish as the new manager of the national team in February last year. McRae was so delighted to appoint his old friend that he went into a riff about how 'close' the two men have been over the years. When he said that their friendship went back to the 1888-1889 season - the year that Jack the Ripper burst on to the scene - out came the calculators along with much mocking humour. Going by McRae's verbal blunder, he was president of McLeish's testimonial committee one hundred and thirty years ago, a timeline that would have put the new Scotland manager very much in the veteran category. This is the man who will lead us to Euro 2020, said the president. 'No pressure, Alex. Over to you ...' McRae got a bit of a ribbing for that, but it was a one-day thing before the next thing arrived and then the next thing and so on. Scottish football is a fast-moving caravan of the absurd. In the past ten years only one club has been sanctioned for the unacceptable conduct of their supporters - a two-year probation for Motherwell. Meanwhile, Clyde, an easy target from League Two, get hammered with a points deduction and a fine for accidentally fielding an ineligible player. That is the sort of behaviour which passes for leadership in Scottish football. Big clubs appear to get a free pass and a small club gets the Sword of Damocles. Football fans from all over Scotland will be able to tell stories about the cravenness of the nation's governing bodies going back decades, but the weakness and lack of moral authority seems to be rising all the time. It's almost as if the national team, in their insipid performances against Kazakhstan and San Marino, has now taken on the guise of the people who run it and their colleagues down the corridor at the SPFL. This is bigger than McLeish. The Scotland fans are now, openly, in revolt against not just him but the people who appointed him and the (same) people who will appoint his successor, whenever that may be. There is little faith, little trust. There is a growing anger in places but, worse still, a growing apathy. Acceptance that nothing will change therefore what's the point. Scotland fans had to view two lamentable performances and then hear ridiculous comment in their wake. When McLeish said that Scotland had 'started brightly' in Kazakhstan - they were two-nil down in ten minutes - there was an 'insult-to-injury' quality to it. When he said on Sunday that, in terms of qualification, 'it's never over this early in any competition' he was ignoring history and asking for blind faith from supporters. Scotland failed to win their first game in the qualification campaigns for the World Cups in 2006, 2010 and 2014 and, of course, they didn't make it. They also failed to win their first game in the qualification campaigns for the Euros in 2012 and 2016 and didn't make it on those occasions either. Even a fast start hasn't helped. For the World Cup in 2002 they were unbeaten after six games. For in 2006 they were unbeaten after three games. For Euro 2016 they had ten points from a possible fifteen at the start of the group and still they couldn't get through to the finals. McLeish had to talk up his team's chances but, he was doing so from a position of desperate weakness and with a scant regard for what had gone before. With every syllable it became more uncomfortable listening to him. Scotland got pulverised by a team ranked one hundred and seventeenth in the world and then toiled horrendously against the - official - worst team in the world. Meanwhile, Northern Ireland, a nation with extremely modest resources but an excellent manager, delivered back-to-back wins against Estonia - ninety six in FIFA's world rankings - and Belarus - seventy eight in the world. The Irish had four players from the Scottish Premiership in their starting line-up, which is as many as Scotland started with against San Marino. They had a clutch more on the bench, including a goalkeeper from Partick Thistle (Conor Hazard) and two thirty nine-year-olds from Glasgow Rangers (Gareth McAuley) and Hearts (Aaron Hughes). All three of the used subs against Belarus had spent time in Scottish football. The guy who got their winner was Josh Magennis, who did six years in Scotland with Aberdeen, St Mirren and Kilmarnock. Not for the first time, the performance of Michael O'Neill's team shamed Scotland. The booing in San Marino was heart-felt and thoroughly deserved. There is no confidence in the SFA having the gumption to change things in the short-term. In the press conference where he referred to the beginning of his friendship with McLeish dating back to Victorian times, McRae spoke cheerily of the 'bright future' which awaited the national team. Not many believed it then. Fewer still believe it now.
Former Premier League striker Pavel Pogrebnyak has been fined almost three thousand knicker for saying it was 'laughable' to have black players in the Russian national team. The thirty five-year-old, who plays for Russian top flight side Ural Yekaterinburg, was also given a suspended ban by the Russian Football Union on Tuesday. The ban, until the end of the season, would come into effect if he made any more discriminatory remarks. The former Reading player will not appeal against the verdict and has snivellingly apologised for his crass statement. Pogrebnyak's comments - made in an interview with the Komsomolskaya Pravda daily newspaper last week - were condemned by Russian president Vladimir Putin's human rights adviser Mikhail Fedotov. Pogrebnyak, who also played for Fulham, said that he was 'opposed' to the recent trend of non-Russian players receiving Russian passports and, potentially, going on to represent the country in international games. He singled out the examples of Brazilian-born duo Mario Fernandes, who plays for CSKA Moscow and Ariclenes da Silva Ferreira (Ari), who plays for Krasnodar. 'I don't see the point of this. I do not understand at all why Ari received a Russian passport,' he said. 'It is laughable when a black player represents the Russian national side. Mario Fernandes is a top player. But we also have Igor Smolnikov in his position. We could make do without foreigners as well.' Pogrebnyak, who won thirty three caps for Russia, later said that he did 'not have anything against black players.' One or two people even believed him. 'In the interview I voiced my strictly personal opinion that in the Russian national side I would like to see footballers who were born and raised in our country. That is all,' he claimed. 'I did not mean to insult anyone.' Ah, but you did, Pavel. You did.
The death of a supporter overshadowed Zimbabwe's qualification for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday. Zimbabwe's FA said that a fan was killed 'in a stampede' outside the national stadium in Harare before their final Group G match against Congo-Brazzaville. Despite the tragedy, the qualifier went ahead with Zimbabwe winning two-nil to seal their place at Egypt 2019. The Democratic Republic of Congo also qualified from the group with a one-nil win over Liberia in Kinshasa. Zimbabwe finished top of Group G with DR Congo second. Liberia and Congo-Brazzaville - who were both in contention at the start of the day - were eliminated. With fans clamouring to get inside the stadium in Harare, Zimbabwe's players knew what qualification for the Nations Cup meant to supporters. Khama Billiat, who plays for Kaizer Chiefs in South Africa, opened the scoring in the twentieth minute with a well-struck free-kick. His Belgium-based captain, Knowledge Musona, added a second sixteen minutes later, pouncing on a defensive error. Congo-Brazzaville tried to get back into the match but could not overcome a powerful and resilient Warriors team. The victory makes it back-to-back Nations Cup appearances for Zimbabwe, who played at Gabon 2017 after an eleven-year absence from the finals. In Kinshasa, Liberia needed a draw to go through, but China-based Cedric Bakambu's 52nd-minute goal ensured DR Congo made it instead. Liberia - who had requested for this fixture to be moved away from DR Congo because of concerns over Ebola - brought on Newcastle's under-twenty three midfielder Mohammed Sangare in the second half for his international debut. But DR Congo secured the victory they needed. The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations will, for the first time, take place in June and July and will feature twenty four teams rather than sixteen.
Cardiff City are reportedly 'set to claim' that the deal to buy Emiliano Sala from Nantes for fifteen million knicker was 'not legally binding,' as their efforts to weasel out of paying what they - morally, if not necessarily legally - owe shamefully continues. The Bluebirds are refusing to make interim payments for the striker, who died in a plane crash on 21 January. Cardiff will tell world football's governing body FIFA that Nantes' conditions for completion of the deal were 'not fulfilled' and Sala was not registered as a Premier League player. Nantes claim the required paperwork was all completed. The French club referred the matter to FIFA, who want Cardiff to submit their evidence by 3 April. Sala was Cardiff's record signing, announced on Saturday 19 January. The Argentine died when an aircraft piloted by David Ibbotson, who is still missing, crashed into the English Channel near Guernsey. The club was due to pay a first instalment to Nantes on 20 February. An alleged Cardiff 'source; allegedly claimed that the transfer agreement stipulated - at the request of Nantes - that the Football Association of Wales and France's Ligue de Football Professional had to 'confirm' the registration to both clubs by 22 January, along with confirmation of the international transfer certificate being released. The Premier League also had to clear the registration. The Bluebirds insist the terms of the contract 'maintains' that if any parts of that arrangement were not confirmed, then the deal would be 'null and void.' The Ligue De Football Professional reportedly did not confirm with Nantes until 25 January. It is thought the notifications clause was inserted because if the deal fell through, both Cardiff and Nantes would have had time to seek a new player before the January transfer window closed on 31 January. BBC Sport has also claimed to have 'learned' arrangements for a signing-on fee 'did not meet Premier League rules and so had been rejected by the league.' A Cardiff spokesman would not comment on specific details but said: 'The club is aware of FIFA's request for a response by 3 April and is processing that accordingly. We have no further comment at this stage.' Nantes say they completed all the necessary paperwork and have pointed out that FIFA themselves registered the international transfer certificate on 21 January. They say they have been fully compliant with FIFA's rules.
UEFA has opened disciplinary action against the Football Association of Ireland for the protest that took place during Tuesday's Euro 2020 qualifier. The Republic of Ireland's one-nil win over Georgia was delayed by four minutes when fans threw tennis balls on to the pitch at the Aviva Stadium. Dozens of balls were thrown from the stands in protest at ex-chief executive John Delaney remaining at the FAI. The charges will be dealt with by UEFA on Thursday, 16 May. The FAI has been charged under Article 16 (2) of the UEFA disciplinary regulations after the planned protest delayed the match during the first half. The demonstration in the thirty third minute was in response to the FAI's decision to offer Delaney a newly-created Executive Vice President role less than a week after it emerged the Association had received a one hundred thousand Euro loan from their long-serving chief executive in April 2017. Delaney has said that the 'bridging loan' was repaid in full two months after it was received. The Irish Government has written to the FAI to demand 'further information' about the loan and Delaney is expected to be part of an FAI delegation that will attend a government committee hearing on 10 April, to answer questions on the Association's financial dealings.
A brain injury charity wants UEFA to investigate why Fabian Schär was allowed to carry on playing for Switzerland after apparently being knocked unconscious in a Euro 2020 qualifier. Schär collided with Georgia's Jemal Tabidze and received emergency help. The incident occurred after twenty four minutes and Newcastle United defender Schär went on to complete the game and put in a man of the match performance. Headway chief executive Peter McCabe said: 'What is it going to take to make football take concussion seriously?' Schär lay unconscious on the ground after the clash of heads with Tabidze during the match in Tbilisi and Georgian player Jano Ananidze rushed to his aid. The twenty seven-year-old recovered quickly after further treatment from Swiss first-aiders, Swiss newspaper Blick reported and was able to continue playing, helping set up Switzerland's second-half goals for their two-nil victory. 'It looks awful. I can't remember anything,' Schär told Blick after being shown video footage. 'I was out for a few seconds. My skull is still humming. And I've got neck ache and a bruise on my forehead. But it was worth it.' Tabidze also lay motionless after the clash, his shirt covered in blood but he, too, recovered and continued playing with a bandage around his head before coming off just after the hour mark. McCabe said: 'How many more players will have their careers and, more importantly, their lives and long-term health put at risk by the sport's inability to follow its own protocols? Put simply, the decision to allow Fabian Schär to return to the field of play after suffering a clear concussion was not only incredibly dangerous, but also a clear dereliction of duty. The player's comments after the match are also deeply disturbing and again show the lack of awareness and understanding among players. UEFA must immediately launch an investigation into the incident and explain why their protocols were not followed.' The Swiss FA confirmed on Monday that Schär will not play in Tuesday's Group D game with Denmark in Basel. It is understood the medical departments of Newcastle and Switzerland made a joint decision to withdraw Schär from the Denmark game. Some atypical lazy tabloid journalism in the UK saw claims that Fabian was 'set to miss' United's Premier League trip to The Arse next week 'due to concussion.' In reality he is, in fact, suspended for that particular game.
A footballer has been acquitted of racially abusing an opposition player before a mass brawl with the punching and the kicking and kids gettin' sparked and aal sorts. Prosecutors had alleged that Sheffield Wednesday's Fernando Forestieri 'insulted' Mansfield Town's Krystian Pearce during a pre-season friendly. Mansfield Magistrates' Court heard Pearce 'had to be restrained' during 'a forty-man brawl.' Forestieri was found not guilty of racially aggravated harassment and using threatening words or behaviour. District Judge Jonathan Taffe ruled Pearce 'may have misheard' Forestieri as 'it was very loud' at the ground on 24 July. The court heard that the incident began with a foul by Forestieri on a Mansfield player which prompted his team-mates, including Pearce, to react. The prosecution alleged this led to 'a heated exchange of words' and, while Forestieri was speaking mainly in Spanish, he allegedly used 'derogatory racial terms.' Mansfield manager David Flitcroft told the court that he felt he had to pull Pearce away from Forestieri after being told about 'a racist incident' by the fourth official. Pearce confronted Forestieri after the match. The Owls player denied being racist and apologised if the defender had 'misheard.' Giving evidence, Forestieri also denied using any racist terms. He said: 'No, I never said that, I'm not like that. I was very sad because I'm not a racist. The first rule in football is to respect your colleagues.' Forestieri was banned for three games and fined twenty five grand as a result of the brawl.
Here's a remarkable goal scored by Jason Cowley for Bromsgrove Sporting, a team playing in the Southern League Division One Central, the eighth tier of English football. Cowley shows mad skills before burying the ball in the old onion bag. The goal came in Sporting's two-one league win over Corby Town. If Lionel Messi had scored that, dear blog reader, people would be saying ... 'what the Hell is Lionel Messi doing playing for Bromsgrove Sporting?' Probably.
A Welsh footballer has been convicted of using his car as a 'one-tonne weapon' to 'knock down spectators like skittles' after his team lost a match. Lee Taylor drove his BMW into eleven rival supporters, some as young as fourteen, after his side lost five-nil. The thirty six-year-old Margam player 'lost his temper' and drove into the victims after a game in Cornelly, Bridgend county, on 19 April 2018. Taylor, from Port Talbot, will be sentenced in April. A jury found him very guilty of dangerous driving and eleven counts of 'attempting to do grievous bodily harm with intent.' He claimed he was 'trying to escape' the teenagers when he got into his car after they called him 'fatty.' Taylor claimed he did not know he had hit the boys until the police arrested him later that day. He told the court that he was 'trying to break up a confrontation' between a Margam teammate and fifteen to twenty supporters of rivals Cornelly United outside the changing rooms when the group turned on him. But Christopher Rees, prosecuting, said Taylor 'got into his car to drive at the youths because he lost his temper.' Some of the boys were thrown up into the air and it was only by 'sheer good fortune' that none suffered injuries worse than cuts and bruising, he added. 'It was an attack that was out of all proportion to the playground nonsense that happened beforehand.' The court was told that Taylor had previous convictions for twenty four offences, including criminal damage, taking vehicles without authority, common assault and affray. Mobile phone footage was played to the court allegedly showing Taylor getting out of his car and assaulting a young man who had confronted him. Judge Daniel Williams said that he would consider handing down an extended sentence for the 'serious offences' after a report by the probation service. After the hearing, Janine Davies, from the CPS, said: 'Lee Taylor used his car as a weapon, deliberately driving at the group. When cars are used as weapons the consequences can be devastating. We wish all those injured in this incident a speedy recovery.'
