HESKEY: PLAYERS DESERVE PRAISE FOR REFUSING TO LISTEN TO BOOS
SOME England fans will never accept players taking a knee, Emile Heskey has warned.
The Three Lions stars took the anti-racism stance before their friendly fixtures against Austria and Romania.
However, they faced jeers from a vocal minority of supporters at the Riverside Stadium.
England boss Gareth Southgate said his players had “had enough” of being called on to explain an action that should speak for itself.
And Heskey, who was capped 62 times for England, believes a small section of supporters are being wilfully ignorant.
“They don’t really want to know,” he said. “Let them boo or whatever they want. How many more times can a player tell you, ‘I’m doing it because of this?’
“They’ve given the reasons. They keep explaining the reason but some people aren’t listening.
“The lads have explained and if you don’t believe in what they’re doing, then you boo. That means you’re against them and I don’t get that.
“You go to watch your team to cheer them on, make them feel good and make them
want to win. I don’t see how booing them will make them want to win.
“I think the players have been fantastic to stick with it because it would be so easy to say: ‘I’m not doing that any more as we’re getting booed and the fans aren’t happy.’
“But if you really believe in something you stick by it, don’t you?”
Since Project Restart last year, players and staff at Premier League and EFL matches have been taking a knee before kick-off in a show of support against racism.
However, a number of teams in the EFL are now choosing not to perform the gesture.
Former striker Heskey (top) added: “I’m on board with the message. Whether the knee is the right thing or not, I’m on board with the message.
“If it keeps the conversation going, then they have to keep doing it.”