The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| Saha calls for racism crackdown Posted: 02 May 2014 08:47 AM PDT The issue of racism in football was highlighted once again last weekend when a fan threw a banana at Brazil's Dani Alves (pic) during Barcelona's win at Villarreal. Alves' response – he peeled the banana and then took a bite – sparked a widespread show of support for the player on social media, with fellow professionals and celebrities posting pictures of themselves with bananas. Saha, who himself suffered racial abuse while playing in England and while with Italian giants Lazio, said the banana picture campaign had missed the point. The one-time Manchester United favourite said football ought to follow the example of the National Basketball Association in the United States, which banned and fined Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling US$2.5 million (RM8.5 million) for making a racist remark in a taped interview. "Football needs to start handing out those kind of fines," Saha, speaking at the launch of the Soccerex global convention in Manchester, said today. "And believe me, people would change their behaviour if that happened. Right now (the authorities) are scared," the 35-year-old added. "If (big fines) can be handed out to clubs whose fans are racially abusive then let's do it. "That would be a big message to the world that this is not acceptable." Saha, whose parents are from the French island of Guadeloupe, said he feared the reaction to the banana campaign masked a serious point. "I am happy for this reaction, but I dislike the fact that we laugh about it. It's not funny at all. "It looks like everyone is saying, 'we can't change anything, so let's laugh about it'." Saha was racially abused twice during his four-year spell at Everton - firstly from the stands in 2011 and a year later on Twitter. Nevertheless, he believes conditions for non-white players in England have improved significantly although problems remain in mainland Europe. "Things have been done here but not in Europe," he said. "I know that because I played for Lazio for six months. "Obviously the (Italian football) association is trying to do things and try to say that things are improving. England has been a great example (to follow)." Former Liverpool and England winger John Barnes, who was born in Jamaica, experienced several virulent examples of racism when the problem was arguably at its height in the English game in the 1980s. In one notorious incident in 1988, Barnes was pictured back-heeling a a banana off the pitch which had been thrown at him by an Everton fan during the Merseyside derby. Barnes, speaking on behalf of England sponsor Vauxhall, said racist incidents could not be separated from the society that spawned such conduct. "Donald Sterling or the man who threw the banana – I don't blame them at all," Barnes said. "I blame the environment they were brought up in. That has made them feel that way. "The symptoms need targeting and not the individuals. "We have been wrongly taught for the last 200 years that there are certain groups of people who are morally and intellectually superior. "How can we blame Sterling for being the way he is? This is what he has been told all his life." – AFP, May 2, 2014. |
| Martino seeks positives from difficult season for Barcelona Posted: 02 May 2014 06:45 AM PDT The Catalan side have stuttered into the closing stages of the campaign and only have a remote chance of winning the La Liga as they trail leaders Atletico Madrid by four points with three games left. They were knocked out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals by Atletico and defeat in the King's Cup final by bitter rivals Real Madrid means Barca have fallen well short of expectations. "It has been a year that of learning for me, of a team of this level, the league and of European football," Martino told a new conference ahead of the weekend match at home to Getafe. "How to manage with difficult situations, live with the criticisms and the praises as well as many other experiences. I think you learn everywhere but especially here you learn a lot and quickly. "It has been a season with a lot of intensity but I wouldn't say problematic. The club receives a lot of attention and the first year was always going to be difficult. "The analysis changes with the results. It is a year where there has been a lot to learn and incorporate in my career. I hope to take it all on board." The Argentine signed a two-year deal ahead of this campaign but it includes a clause which allows either party to cancel the agreement after the first year. He looks unlikely to stay and former Barcelona favourite Luis Enrique, currently coach of Celta Vigo, leads the list of candidates to replace him. "The chances until recently against Granada have been high (to win the league) and we had a lot of hope. We now continue with the same desire that we have shown against Athletic (Bilbao) and Villarreal," said Martino. "We hope to continue as far as we can and do what is in our hands. It is still mathematically possible even though the likelihood is not very high. "The players have the drive which was important in their period of glory that they have had. Even when things are not going well they continue to battle." Martino also had words of sympathy for Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola who has been criticised for his style of football following the German side's Champions League mauling by Real Madrid. "The comments that he and I receive cannot be compared as what he has achieved is the best in the history of football, not just Barcelona," he said. "He defined a new era. To praise Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid it is not necessary to discredit another style or another way of thinking. "On top of this, the Spain national side also plays this way. If you discredit the short passing game of Guardiola then you are also saying that the national team is going to lose as well." – Reuters, May 2, 2014. |
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