Saint Gareth: At the start of the Euros, Southgate explained that his players would 'take the knee' as an act of solidarity against racism, but it didn’t sit well with the Conservative government. — Reuters
YES, Boris Johnson was quick to condemn the racist abuse that was hurled at three England players whose missed penalty shots in Sunday’s dramatic Euro 2020 football final against Italy ended their nation’s best chance at a major trophy in the sport since its 1966 World Cup victory. But for some, his words stuck in the craw. As the former star player and pundit Gary Neville noted, the prime minister seems to want it both ways.
The vicious social media attacks were directed at Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka, three exceptional young players who happen also to be part of a squad whose diversity proved a strength. Rashford’s grandmother came from the West Indies island of Saint Kitts; Sancho’s parents are from Trinidad and Tobago and Saka’s from Nigeria.
Southgate consoling Saka after the Euros final penalty shootout. — AP
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