Gary Neville has hit out at Prime Minister Boris Johnson for his role in fuelling the racist abuse being aimed at England players today after their Euro 2020 final defeat against Italy.
Arsenal have had to release a statement condemning a section of fans for sending racist messages to England ace Bukayo Saka, and Neville also wants harsher punishments for people engaging in this sickening activity.
However, in the video below, the former Manchester United defender also makes it clear that this comes from the top, as he pointed out that the PM recently said it was okay for fans to boo players for taking the knee…
"It starts at the very top."
Former footballer @GNev2 says has called on Boris Johnson to take a tougher stance on racism in football after some England players received abuse online following last night's clash with Italy.#Euro2020: https://t.co/KUBv2VLGWI pic.twitter.com/VoJPtslaaP
— Sky News (@SkyNews) July 12, 2021
There have been a fair few politicians and media pundits hitting out at England for this anti-racist gesture and the connection with Black Lives Matter, but the reaction to Saka’s penalty miss shows just how much we still need to send a strong message about zero-tolerance of racism in this country.
Fair play to Neville for calling out the hypocritical Johnson for his mixed messages on this subject.