NEVILLE ENGLAND RACISM CLAIM

Ex-coach: Harder for black players to be loved

GARY NEVILLE last night claimed white players are given an easier ride than black players by the media when they make it into the england squad.

Sky pundit Neville said: ‘I think over the last few days I’ve heard people mention, “Well, yeah, Gazza got stick and David Beckham got stick and Wayne Rooney got stick” and I lived closely to those two lads in terms of witnessing it.

‘It was horrific the stick, the vilification they got when it was bad or when they made mistakes. But, you know, when it was good for them they were hero-worshipped. When it’s good for Ashley Cole or Raheem Sterling they can’t get the hero worship.

‘even when you look back at my time with england when Rickie lambert scored that goal or when Jamie Vardy came into the team. “oh, he’s one of ours”.

‘It wasn’t like that when Danny Welbeck came into the squad or say when Marcus Rashford came into the squad.’

Reflecting on the alleged racist abuse against Raheem Sterling which led to Chelsea

banning four supporters following Saturday’s home match against Manchester City, Neville said: ‘Raheem Sterling, what he did yesterday with his Instagram post has forced us to take it on — so that’s a start. It’s not undertones, it’s blatant. He’s been carrying this now for years. This is not just a Chelsea fan. To perform like he has done is a miracle, almost.

‘Raheem came to see me one on one during Euro 2016. Pre-tournament, he was getting absolutely battered. Getting so much stick, we were aware of that. Fans were on to him, the media was on to him. Asking a lot of questions about him. It was so vicious, he felt so targeted, he didn’t know what to do about it. It then continued into the tournament, into the stadiums.

‘He walked in and started to download on me — why was this happening? Why was this so accepted?

‘I saw someone that has a great mentality and is tough but is also vulnerable in terms of how does he deal with it, how does he cope with it, how does he come out of it? Really, as a coach, reflecting on it, I didn’t really know how to deal with it. I went into what would be protective mode.

‘One of my most important players, how’s he getting ready for the next match? “Raheem, you’re a great player, we love you to bits” which, to be fair, we did.

‘As a coaching staff, he played nearly all of f the games for us. You’re trying to patch up to the point where you’re never really dealing with the underlying issue and maybe you never would be able to in that one session. Reflecting now, maybe we brushed it aside a little bit. It’s happened to players before you but really, deep down, understanding that there was a tonal difference to the attacks that he was getting compared to others.

‘In that tournament Harry Kane, who is the blue-eyed boy of English football, was having a difficult time and it was portrayed as because he was on corners. Raheem was having a difficult time and it was because of more personal reasons at times and the language used towards him was difficult.

‘I don’t think he could understand. I think he was asking me why this was happening.

‘Post-tournament, we got knocked out and obviously it was bad from a football point of view. The abuse that he received, particularly in the media, beyond that tournament and the language that was used against him . . .

‘I started to think about whether it happened to anybody while I was playing with England and the lad I used to sit next to in changing rooms for 10 years — Ashley Cole. Out of the golden generation he was the only one I’d say was world class in his position. He’s had to escape this country. He’s almost like a football refugee, seeking asylum to get away from the way in which he’s been treated.

‘The evidence is actually quite heavy when you start to look at it in terms of the appreciation of what would be the black players versus the white players who play for England. I’m part of the problem because I’ve witnessed this and I’ve sat there and been in changing rooms and I’ve sat there with coaches and I’ve seen a lot of this.

‘I grew up in the mid-80s in the north of England where you were surrounded by racism or racist attitudes.

‘It has changed a lot in the last 40 years, don’t get me wrong, but nowhere near far enough.’

Chelsea have suspended four people from attending matches following allegations that Sterling was racially abused during Saturday evening’s match.

Last night one of the group was named to the Daily Mail as Colin Wing, 60, from Beckenham.

Footage appeared to show a group of fans in the lower tier of the Matthew Harding Stand angrily shouting at the Manchester City player as he went to retrieve the ball during the 2-0 victory for the home side.

Sterling, who turned 24 that day, has said he heard racist insults and has spoken to the Metropolitan Police, who are also investigating.

Yesterday, a Chelsea spokesman said: ‘Our investigations into this matter are ongoing. We are fully supporting the police investigation and any information we gather will be passed on to them.

‘If there is evidence of ticket holders taking part in any racist behaviour, the club will issue severe sanctions, including bans. We will also fully support any criminal prosecutions.’

Chelsea were made aware of the footage towards the end of the fixture and officials and police spoke to those who are thought to have been involved.

Chelsea passed their details to the police and plan to speak to the group again, as do investigating officers. Some have claimed that a supporter in blue can be seen calling Sterling a ‘f****** black c***’, although there has been speculation the word used was ‘Manc’ and not ‘black’.

City said they welcomed the suspensions. A spokesman said the club and Sterling are ‘fully engaged’ with Chelsea and police.

Sterling spoke to Met Police detectives who travelled to Manchester on Sunday.

Crowds at Premier League matches are already closely monitored. Each fixture is overseen by a control room with a match commander, while stewards are trained to identify instances of abuse. Last year, Manchester United installed rotating cameras so all areas of their ground can be examined.

The Premier League has funded an app on which supporters can report racist behaviour they witness via their mobile phones.

The Professional Footballers’ Association said they stood ‘shoulder to shoulder’ with Sterling.

‘It is evident that he is often singled out and treated more harshly than his colleagues,’ said a union statement. ‘ We have been aware for a few months of the targeting Raheem faces in the press.’