Clubs take a knee as EPL returns
PLAYERS kneeled in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and victims of the coronavirus were remembered as the English Premier League made a somber return from a 100-day shutdown that deprived England of its national sport.
Back on the sideline at Manchester City was Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, whose positive COVID-19 test in March led to the longest suspension of the top-flight competition since World War II. Fans are still prohibited from attending stadiums.
Britain is still trying to contain one of the world’s worst outbreaks of the coronavirus while also convulsed by a reckoning over racial injustice that roused the campaigning passion and anger of EPL players following the death of American George Floyd.
“I am embarrassed, I am ashamed for what white people have done to black people,” City manager Pep Guardiola said on Wednesday. “We have to do a lot of things for black people we’ve not done so far.”
The message “Black Lives Matter” replaced player names on jerseys during
City’s 3-0 victory over Arsenal and Aston Villa’s 0-0 draw with Sheffield United. The symbolic move that will continue in this weekend’s round of games is being accompanied by demands from players for substantive changes to end discrimination and promote diversity.
After the opening whistle blew in the first game at Villa Park, every player took a knee in a tribute to Floyd, who was killed by a policeman in Minneapolis last month. In Manchester, the same gesture took place just before kickoff.
“We had seen the other teams do it in the earlier kickoff and we thought we have to do it as well,” said City forward Raheem Sterling, who is at the forefront of the campaign against racism in soccer and wider society.
“Little by little, we are seeing change and that’s what everyone is hoping for, not just black players but the majority of the country.”
The power of footballers to use their platform to bring about political change was shown this week when Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford forced the government to reverse its decision to halt school lunch vouchers for poor students over the summer holidays.
“It’s becoming more normal that people speak out on topics that they believe in and I think it’s just positive for the future,” said the 22-year-old forward.
The government was keen to see Rashford, Sterling and the rest of the EPL stars back in action as the lockdown is eased. But games cannot be watched in pubs nor in stadiums because of ongoing concerns about gatherings spreading the coronavirus.
As well as a Black Lives Matter logo, EPL jerseys for the rest of the season will feature a badge thanking Britain’s National Health Service. It is a show of appreciation for the medics as the coronavirus threat persists, with the toll rising above 42,000 on Wednesday.
Sterling scored the first goal of the EPL’s comeback as City swept aside 10man Arsenal at Etihad Stadium.
The EPL plans to finish the remaining 92 games of its season by July 26 and the FA Cup final is now due to be staged a week later on August 1.
(Agencies)