Sterling: Give black coaches a chance
RAHEEM STERLING believes the better coaching roles Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard have landed compared to Sol Campbell and Ashley Cole highlight the deep-rooted racism in British football. And the England and Manchester City star has called for black people in football to be given equal opportunities. Sterling has echoed the sentiments of the Black Lives Matter protesters by joining the calls for change in society and, in his case, the football industry. The shocking death of US citizen George Floyd last month sparked demonstrations across the world. Sterling believes the
protests are a ‘great starting point’ but declared it is now time for actions and not just words in the ongoing fight against racism, injustice and the disparate treatment of black people in every walk of life.
Rangers was Gerrard’s first frontline management job while Lampard is on his second post as manager of Chelsea after a spell in charge of Derby.
Campbell, meanwhile, is on his second lower-league role, as Southend manager, after starting out at struggling Macclesfield. Cole is currently a youth coach at Chelsea.
Speaking to BBC Newsnight, Sterling said: ‘It’s [about] coming together and finding a solution to be able to spark change because we can talk as much as we want about changing and putting people, black people, in these positions that I do feel they should be in.
‘For example, the coaching staff that you see around football clubs, I’ll give a perfect [example].
‘There’s Steven Gerrard, your Frank Lampards, you have your Sol Campbells and you have your Ashley Coles. All had great careers, all played for England. At the same time, they’ve all done their badges to coach at the highest level and the two that haven’t been given the right opportunities are the two black former players.’
The percentage of black players in English football is nowhere near reflected in coaching, management and senior positions off the field.
While a third of the Premier League’s players are black, Wolves’ Nuno Espirito Santo is the only black manager. There are also no top-flight board members or chief executives who are black or ethnic minorities.
Asked when he believes the current demands for change will have made an impact, Sterling said: ‘When there’s more black people in [leading] positions. When I can have someone from a black background for me to be able to go to in the FA with a problem I have within the club.
‘These will be the times that I know that change is happening and not just in my field, also in Parliament.
‘What is it in Parliament, 600 MPs in Parliament, six hundred and something MPs in Parliament, and only 21 of them are black. So this just shows how far behind we are. Once we do see those numbers shifting, that’s when I’ll be happy and the people will be happy. There’s something like 500 players in the Premier League and a third of them are black and we have no representation of us in the hierarchy, no representation of us in the coaching staffs. There’s not a lot of faces that we can relate to and have conversations with.
‘I want change. The change is being able to speak to people in Parliament, people at the hierarchy at my football club, not just my football club, football clubs across the country, people at the national team of England, to implement change and give equal chances to black coaches and not just black coaches, but also different ethnicities.
‘To give black coaches, not just coaches but people in these, in their respective fields, the right opportunity. I feel like that’s what’s lacking here. It’s not just taking the knee. It is about giving people the chance they deserve.’
Sterling has emerged as a prominent voice on the issue of racism in football, especially after he was the target of sickening abuse when City played at Chelsea in December 2018.
He urged other footballers to use their platforms to speak up. He said: ‘It’s a great starting point to start protesting and to get your voice heard. People in positions which I’m lucky enough to be in, this is a time to speak on these subjects, speak on injustice.
‘I come from the football industry, someone like Anthony Joshua from the boxing industry. He can talk on the injustice he sees in his field.
‘It’s how we move on from here. We’ve done a lot of talking. And it’s time now to act.
‘You need to have people fighting in the forefront, giving valid points and situations in everyday lives, everyday walks of life, speaking on these subjects and bringing it to the necessary people. Keep fighting for change.
‘Just protesting alone is not going to make a change in this country. We know we have to keep talking, keep fighting. And, hopefully, we do see change.’