GUNNERS CHIEF: ‘RACISM IS THE WORST PROBLEM IN FOOTBALL’

DAVID McDONNELL ARSENAL chief Vinai Venkatesham believes racist abuse of players on social media is the “biggest problem” facing football.

Gunners striker Eddie Nketiah (top) became the latest high-profile player to be targeted by vile racist abuse on Twitter.

Nketiah was told to leave the club in a racist message sent in reply to a picture he posted ahead of last night’s Europa League tie against Benfica. Chief executive Venkatesham

said: “The abuse of so many of our black footballers on social channels is probably the biggest problem we have. We cannot underestimate the impact social media abuse can have on an individual.

“We have to take this as a wake-up call.

“Unfortunately, we are getting to a point where the abuse a black footballer is getting is becoming increasingly normalised.” Venkatesham (below) said that Arsenal have protocols in place to tackle the problem – but urged social media companies to do more to combat it.

He added: “We provide support, psychologists, all that type of stuff.

“Across the whole Premier League, the clubs do a lot, and the Premier

League themselves do a lot. But we really need the support of the social media companies here. We cannot do this alone. “How can you explain to a black footballer that if a piece of pirated content goes up on social media it is taken down within minutes – but that’s not the same for racist abuse? I don’t know how you explain that.”