One Liverpool fan was caught on camera doing a monkey impression when Evra was on the ball. “This matter is now under investigation by specialist hate crime detectives and we are working with Liverpool Football Club to identify the man in question.”

In response, following kick-off, Liverpool fans started spreading the disgusting rumour that United fans had been arrested for spitting on the Hillsborough memorial.

The Merseyside police have quickly spoken out against these rumours, claiming that whilst two people were arrested and seventeen people were ejected from the ground, it was all for “low level incidents.”

Is there no limit to the depths those vermin will sink today? Why on earth would you make up a rumour like that?

“We’ve made the boy an offer and he’s turned it down,” said Ferguson. “It’s his decision. He can please himself – there are no more talks planned that I’m aware of. If he wants to stay we would love that. But if he wants to look elsewhere that’s up to him – there’s nothing you can do with modern-day footballers. He has changed his agent – I don’t know why. He’s got an agent that has given him advice that I do not understand. I think the problem is with the agent, not the player.”

The following month a deal was agreed and the manager was delighted, claiming he “couldn’t bare to lose him.” Maybe both sides were prepared to give a little and the situation was resolved. However, when the next extension came to be discussed, history repeated itself. Midway through the 2007-2008 season, the club were offering him just £45,000 a week on a new deal. He wanted £55,000 a week.

To give some context, in 2003, John O’Shea was offered a contract of around £35,000. “The one thing I don’t want is for people to say I can play anywhere,” said a 22-year-old O’Shea. “It’s fine for this season because it’s done me the world of good but over time I want to stay in one position.”

Four years later and O’Shea had failed to nail down a place in the starting XI but certainly was a very useful utility player. He was rewarded with a contract worth around £50,000 a week.

Back to 07-08, Gary Neville was out for the season meaning Wes was our first choice right back and with 52 appearances, played more games for us than any other player. When you consider this was the season we won the Double (with Wes missing just two league games all season and supplying the assist for our only goal in the European Cup final) it added further weight to his argument that he should be rewarded for his importance to the team. Yet the club still tried to take the piss out of him. Why? Because they thought they could.

“Players of today live in their agents’ pockets,” Ferguson said two months before Wes eventually signed. “It’s a situation which depresses me at times, it really depresses me. Wes has been with us since he was 13, but I don’t think that matters these days. Players’ agents live their lives for them and if you are happy to go along with that, you get the situation you have got just now. But Wes knows this and the other players have told him. We wouldn’t have made the offer if we hadn’t had faith in him. It’s in his hands. It’s amazing really given that he has had such a good season and has had such a good run of games while Gary has been injured.”

So, because Wes had been with the club since he was 13, he should settle for any old salary whilst lesser players earned more. O’Shea was megging Figo when he signed his first big deal in 2003, skipping out on the lesser contracts most players his age who have come through the ranks sign, the kind of contract Wes will have signed at that age. This meant by 2007 they had to bump it up even further, despite the fact O’Shea hadn’t fulfilled that early promise and was used as a utility player.

Then think about how much money Rio Ferdinand was earning every week when he was banned for eight months through his own stupidity, only to then take months agreeing a new and improved contract when he returned. There was no criticism of him by the manager though.

The fans booed Rio during the 2005 pre-season friendlies and rather than agreeing with us, claiming that he was in his agent’s pocket, Sir Alex defended him. “I’m not entirely happy with the reaction of the fans,” he said. “Players who go on the field and hear their own fans booing them is not encouraging at all.” David Gill and Carlos Queiroz offered similar statements of support, “You have to think about your worth,” Gill said. “I respect him for that.”

The foreign players or the bigger names we bring in are afforded time and support whilst ridiculous sums of money are put in front of them and rejected. But the local lads, who are offered lower salaries, are expected to sign. The club means so much more to them yet the club seems to punish them for that.

“I’m a Manchester lad and would love to play for United for the rest of my career,” said Brown in 2001.

“I’ve been here since I was 13 and don’t want to be anywhere else,” he said in 2004.

“I’m a Manchester lad and Old Trafford is still the only place for me,” he said in 2007. “I would love to see out my career at United. I’ve no intention of going elsewhere.”

“I would do anything for the club,” he said later that year. “It is certainly hard to imagine ever playing for anyone else. Hopefully that won’t happen. I am happy here and hopefully I can stay here.”

“To be part of a team I have supported all my life is a great honour,” he said in 2008.

He didn’t start talking to clubs behind our back, he didn’t show a lack of commitment on the pitch, he just asked to be paid what he felt he deserved and was demonised by the club for it.

Some players have a “loyalty” bonus in their contract, whereby if they don’t hand in a transfer request and don’t try and leave, they will be rewarded. What about the players who want to stay regardless? What about those who have always dreamed of playing for that club, give 100% every time they’re on the pitch and would do anything to stay forever? What is their reward? Just being offered a new contract at all, it would seem, regardless of whether it’s on a parity with those of a similar status who happen not to be local.

Danny Welbeck may be the latest player to receive the Wes Brown treatment after the club and player have failed to come to an agreement on salary. Whilst the manager insisted there were no problems last week, it is clear there is some disagreement behind the scenes. This isn’t an unusual situation where new contracts are concerned, with both sides keen to get the best deal, but I would like to see a resolution with allows Welbeck to feel valued.

It’s interesting to note that as a 5-year-old, Danny was playing football on the streets of Longsight with a 16-year-old United trainee. Who else? Wes Brown. On Markfield Avenue at No 42, with a red front door, lived the Browns. On the opposite side of the street were the Welbecks.

“We didn’t encourage it at first – we thought Danny could get hurt,” said Brown. “But the concern didn’t last long, to be honest. Once Danny got started, you could see he was decent. He had the skills and he could look after himself.”

Here are two Manchester lads, who will have worn their United shirts as they played on the fields, lifting their collar like Eric Cantona or trying to take players on like they were Ryan Giggs, who had achieved their dream.

“There is no better feeling for a Manc kid than scoring for United,” Welbeck said in August 2011.

“I’ve been in Manchester all my life and I’m a Manc through and through,” he said in April 2011.

“I suppose I’m just like any other normal Manc boy, really,” he said in September 2009. “To be given the chance to play for United is a dream.”

“Scoring in front of the Stretford End is what every young boy from Manchester dreams of,” he said in November 2008 after scoring on his debut. “I loved it. I’ve thought about it every day of my life ever since I started playing football.”

So, when you get a player who talks like this about the club, instead of rewarding them for that loyalty, it seems as though United are keener to take advantage of it.

Welbeck has reportedly been offered £45,000 a week but is holding out for £60,000. Danny’s agent is his cousin and will have probably taken note of the fact Chicharito has just signed a deal reportedly worth £80,000 a week. Of course, Hernandez had a blinding first season with the club, scoring 20 goals, but the new deal was as much about keeping Real Madrid at bay as it was rewarding the player. His agent had spoken to the Spanish club and there was no way United were willing to lose this gem of a player.

However, Welbeck is ahead of Chicharito in pecking order this season, scoring 9 goals in 21 games, a strike rate of 0.43 goals per game, which rivals the 0.44 goals per game from the Mexican last season. Why should Welbeck put pen to paper on a four or five year deal which sees him earn pretty much half as much as a player he is keeping out of the team?

This is not a matter of money, rather principle. Whether it was £45 a week or £45,000 a week, Welbeck should be offered a deal which is in keeping with his position in the squad and comparable with those around him. If the club want him to prove himself over the course of a season, as Chicharito did, then fair enough, they can open negotiations again in the summer. But Welbeck would then have just 12 months remaining on his current deal and nobody wants us to be in that situation.

I’m not one to pander to the precious culture we see from footballers today but then I also do not agree with the club taking advantage of our local players either. They shouldn’t be expected to be paid considerably less just because they’re desperate to play for United, that is backward. Instead, let’s celebrate the fact we have local lads in the team and see to it that they are duly rewarded. Fingers crossed it will all be sorted out soon and that Welbeck’s Manchester United career goes as well as we all want it to.

———-
After Wes rejection, will Rio receive special treatment?

Why does this company have access to Manchester United away tickets?

I’m not going to publish the name because I have no intention of advertising them but it is scandalous that any one who fancies it can buy up to as many eight tickets at a time for our away matches.

Fans pay a fortune for their season tickets every season and to ensure they have even the chance of getting away tickets, must purchase the League Cup tickets too. So many fans get knocked back for every away allocation so the find out that companies have access to the limited number of away tickets on offer is fairly sickening.

How is this allowed to happen?

Apparently, I was being too kind to our friends from Pity City, with Anfield season ticket holding journalist Ben Thornley writing an embarrassing defence of Suarez in The Daily Post.

“If you have neither the time nor inclination to read the Football Association’s hefty report on their investigation into the Luis Suarez/ Patrice Evra racism row, let me save you the trouble. After two months and 115-pages, the entire case came down to one man’s word against another’s.”

The commission claim quite the opposite of this, as supported by Luis Suarez’s chosen representative, Peter McCormick OBE.

“215. It was accepted by both Mr Greaney and Mr McCormick in closing submissions that this is not simply a case of one person’s word against another.”

It’s interesting that a journalist can suggest they are saving you time by summarising the report for you, only to write the complete opposite of what was contained inside the report. The man who was paid to defend Suarez in this case agreed it wasn’t one person’s word against the other, yet this journo seems to think he knows better. Odd.

“Language experts brought in by the FA concluded that what Suarez admits to having said – “what, negro?” – wouldn’t be considered offensive in his native Uruguay, but what Evra says he hurled at him would be.”

Again, this is not true. This is what the language experts actually said:

“170. The word “negro” can have pejorative connotations, as it may be associated with low class status, ugliness, vulgar behaviour, noisiness, violence, dishonesty, sexual promiscuity etc. 171. The word can be employed with the intent to offend and to offend in racial terms. 172. The word “negro” is by no means, however, always used offensively. The term can also be used as a friendly form of address to someone. 175. In all cases, however, when the word is used in this way [without offence] it implies a sense of rapport or the attempt to create such rapport; naturally, if the term were used with a sneer, then it might carry some of the negative connotations referred to above. 200. There are some black people in Uruguay and other areas of Latin America who object to the use of the word “negro” as a term of address, as they say it highlights skin colour when this should be irrelevant. This is the use of the word “negro” (ie as a term of address) which Suarez contended before us is acceptable, yet his view appears to be contentious with some in Uruguay and Latin America.”

The language experts explicitly stated that the use of the word “negro” was only inoffensive in Uruguay if used in a “conciliatory” way. Conciliatory? To end a disagreement or someone’s anger by acting in a friendly way. Is that what Suarez was doing? He pinched Evra and initially claimed this was to defuse the situation too but when he was cross-examined he admitted this was a lie.

Anyone who has seen the video footage can see there was no part of Suarez that was trying to behave in a conciliatory way. He was trying to wind Evra up and he was succeeding. So why on earth would anyone believe that Suarez, contradicting all his other behaviour and actions, was using the word “negro” in a friendly and endearing way?

“They decided Evra was the more credible witness, chiefly because his version of events tallied closer to the television footage of the incident than Suarez’s.”

Again, another incorrect claim from the journalist who is supposed to be summarising the report. Evra was a more credible witness chiefly because his testimony was never contradicted. Wherever possible, his version of events of what happened tallied with what the referee said, what Giggs, Valencina, Chicharito and Nani said too.

In contrast, Suarez’s testimony was contradicted by Kenny Dalglish, Damien Comolli and Dirk Kuyt. Suarez told Comolli his version of events in Spanish and Kuyt in Dutch. Dalglish, Comolli and Kuyt reported exactly the same comments, that Suarez had told them he said to Evra “because you are black”. When Suarez was interviewed, he claimed he said “why, black?”. Suarez’s defence suggested that both Comolli and Kuyt misunderstood what Suarez had said, despite him speaking in different languages to both of them, and them both misunderstanding him and coming out with identical statements to each other. Even this Liverpool fan’s website can see why the commission deemed Suarez an unreliable witness. It’s not difficult.

So yes, the video footage did help the commission decide that Evra was a more credible witness, but what their decision hinged on was the fact that Evra’s testimony was supported by everyone questioned, whilst Suarez’s was contradicted by everyone questioned.

“Essentially the Liverpool striker has been convicted on the hunch of three men.”

Again, a statement that would suggest this journalist hasn’t even bothered to read the report. Did Suarez used insulting words towards Evra during the match contrary to FA Rule E3? Were the insulting words used by Suarez include a reference to Evra’s colour within the meaning of Rule E3(2)? Yes. Suarez admitted he called Evra “negro”. Even if you completely dismiss all of Evra’s testimony, it’s irrelevant that Suarez calls black people in Uruguay “negro”. It’s irrelevant whether he thinks people will believe he was trying to make friends with Evra by calling him “negro”, after kicking him in the knee, pinching him and hitting him around the back of the head, all the midst of a game between the two most hated rivals in the country. The word “negro” in England is an insulting word which refers to skin colour and Suarez admitted that he used it. There is no defence.

With Kenny Dalglish as the example to follow, it’s not hard to see why Liverpool fans are still keen to paint Suarez and their club as the victims in all this. However, the sooner people become more bothered about trying to stop racism than they are defending their own players, regardless of what they’d said or done, the better.

————-
Worth reading: The FA and Luis Suarez – Reasons of the Regulatory Commission
Dalglish needs a few home truths… not more flattery
“Dalglish plumbed the deepest depths when he tweeted: ‘Let’s not let him walk alone.’ It was a cheap and demeaning attempt to evoke the tradition of a great football club in the service of one who had been found guilty by the FA of a serious offence.”
Suarez row has made clear to all where line of decency is drawn
“It can only be hoped that Liverpool Football Club and their iconic manager have the wit to stop embarrassing themselves.”

The FA report: “The two witnesses who say they heard those words directed by Mr Bethell at Mr Evra are the Manchester United first team coach Mr Mike Phelan and the goalkeeping coach Mr Richard Hartis… Even if we disregard the fact that Mr Evra has never claimed to have heard such a remark on that day, it is notable that there were several other people far nearer to Mr Bethell at the critical point in time than were either Mr Phelan or Mr Hartis.”

Evra has never made public accusations of racism before. The sooner journalists stood up against Liverpool’s lies, the better.

After Kenny Dalglish foolishly repeatedly defended their striker, the club had been left with little option to back Suarez. However, now that he has been found guilty, you’d think even scousers would have enough class to condemn him.

Instead, they choose to lie and claim that Evra has made unfounded allegations before and suggest that because Suarez has played with black players before he can’t possibly be racist.

It is our strong held belief, having gone over the facts of the case, that Luis Suarez did not commit any racist act. It is also our opinion that the accusation by this particular player was not credible – certainly no more credible than his prior unfounded accusations.

Patrice Evra has never made any public claims of racism against anyone before, let allow numerous accusations, as this Liverpool statement implies. Presumably the situations LFC are referring to are the allegations made by deaf football fans against Steve Finnan when they claimed to lip read him making racist comments to Evra. Also, when Mike Phelan claimed that Chelsea groundstaff made racist comments towards Evra, even though our player denied having heard any racist remarks himself. LFC are either embarrassing ignorant or liars. Either way, to make such unfounded allegations against Evra, suggesting he is playing the ‘race card’ against Suarez, is shocking.

Luis himself is of a mixed race family background as his grandfather was black. He has played with black players and mixed with their families whilst with the Uruguay national side and was Captain at Ajax Amsterdam of a team with a proud multi-cultural profile, many of whom became good friends. It seems incredible to us that a player of mixed heritage should be accused and found guilty in the way he has based on the evidence presented.

Ah ok, I get it, some of Suarez’s best friends are black people, right? That’s usually how a racist defends himself after being questioned over making an offensive comment or joke.

We would also like to know when the FA intend to charge Patrice Evra with making abusive remarks to an opponent after he admitted himself in his evidence to insulting Luis Suarez in Spanish in the most objectionable of terms. Luis, to his credit, actually told the FA he had not heard the insult.

Firstly, if we are to accuse every footballer for “making abusive remarks to an opponent” the FA would do nothing else. Secondly, I’d like to think Evra called Liverpool’s racist striker all the names under the sun. Whilst not literally kicking racism out of football, as Eric Cantona did almost two decades ago, I am proud that our vice-captain was proud to speak out against racism, when so many other players would rather bury their heads in the sand.

If one of our players was ever found guilty of making racist remarks I would be gutted. That feeling would only intensify if they were ignorant enough to respond with the drivel LFC have done in their official statement. Their fans should be embarrassed and ashamed of their club and player, but just like always, I’m sure they will find someone else to blame.

Black armbands for Suarez… that’s if he doesn’t object to the colour.

———–
How Patrice Evra has never played the race card and why assumptions are dangerous

After the final whistle, the talk of Manchester becoming the new Milan was quickly replaced with jokes about Channel 5 (we will actually be playing on ITV4, meh) and comparison with the teams from London who had progressed though. Whilst there were some blues and reds who could console themselves with the failure of their rivals, it mattered little to me. At some point, I’m sure I’ll find it funny that Sheikh Mansour can’t even buy City success, but all their failure means to me is we’re saved from the unbearable piss taking that would have ensued. Their misery doesn’t soften the blow for our own pain and I am genuinely gutted we failed to get out of the group.

Patrice Evra spoke well on the topic, as he usually does, expressing the feelings of plenty of fans.  “We deserve to be out,” he said. “But it is embarrassing to be in the Europa League.” Embarrassing is right. It’s impossible to avoid sounding like a snob or massively spoilt, but that competition is there for those who aren’t good enough for the Champions League and it’s embarrassing we’re lumped in with those second rate sides. APOEL are good enough for the elite competition, so are Napoli and FC Basel, but we’re with Stoke and the like in the bloody Europa League. It’s sickening.

Roy Keane was critical of the younger players on Wednesday and whilst I agreed with a lot of what he said, my initial reaction was to feel defensive of our youngsters. But our former captain doesn’t have any time for sentimentality and when you break it down, De Gea fucked up for the first goal and one of Evans or Smalling should have dealt with the second. I’m not putting blame on their doorstep and we learn more from our failures than our success, but there’s no tinted specs where Keano is concerned and on the night, some of the younger lads didn’t do their job and it cost us.

Keane said the players were letting the manager down and that’s true. The young ones have time to learn but it is the more experienced players, who should have taken the game by the balls and shown urgency from the first whistle, who need to “take a look in the mirror”, as Evra said. Yes, we dominated the game and yes we created enough chances to win it, but there’s no excuse for us not getting a draw. There’s no excuse for Rooney not burying that cross from Nani in the first half. Excruciating.

Essentially though, it’s the games at home we will be left to regret. The FC Basel game at home was the biggest joke of the lot and that is the game that knocked us out. Danny Welbeck put us 2-0 up with less than 20 minutes played but we found ourselves 3-2 down in injury time before Ashley Young drew us level. Joke.

So now we have the Europa League and the only thing that will take the edge off the pain for me is if we field the team we would have used for the League Cup. I’ve heard reds saying that we should go for it, that it would be great for Fergie to win it, but I can’t get my head around that way of thinking at all. Here comes the football snob in me again but who gives a shit about the Europa League? If it was the final tomorrow night, yes, obviously I’d want us to play our strongest team and win it, but the damage that competition could do to us is not worth the benefit. We’re without Nemanja Vidic for the rest of the season now because of one Champions League game, as if we can afford to risk any more of our players in trying to win the Europa League. If we got to the semis, maybe then take it more seriously, as silverware is silverware, but we should rely on our youngsters and fringe players to get us there, and if they can’t, no big deal.

The overriding feeling for me though, and one that is sadly so repetitive and dull, is we would not be in this position if we had brought in the quality central midfielder we’ve been crying out for. The cost of missing out on Champions League football from this point on is reportedly worth £20m. To make you sick, David Silva cost £24m and Juan Mata cost £26m, two players who have been brilliant in the Premier League, yet we wouldn’t splash the cash on a top midfielder. Could we afford to buy one? The answer is we couldn’t afford not to buy one, and our Champions League exit has gone a long way to proving that.

It isn’t so much the transfer fee that apparently held us back but the obsession with keeping the wage bill down. That’s why the likes of John O’Shea and Wes Brown were sold last summer and why Rio Ferdinand will probably be allowed to leave this summer. The best players want the best wages and whilst I love seeing us bring players like De Gea, Jones, Smalling, Cleverley, Welbeck and the Da Silvas in to the first team, that doesn’t mean I don’t want someone top class in the centre of the park, someone who has dozens of Champions League games under their belt, who has played in finals and World Cups. If we can break the bank for Rooney, who’s hardly set the world alight since forcing the club to pay him a small fortune on a weekly basis, then why aren’t we doing the same for a top player in arguably the most important position?

It’s not all doom and gloom though. We’ve got a good squad and we’ve got the best manager. I still think we’ll win the league, even if Vidic’s injury makes that a lot more difficult, and not having the annual Champions League quarter/semi finals to deal with in the last couple of months of the season will help with that. But that’s beside the point. It shouldn’t be either, or, where United are concerned. Cristiano Ronaldo guided us to that brilliant league and European Cup double in 2008 and the £80m we got for him has not been reinvested in to another superstar, regardless of how highly I rate some of the individuals that have been bought since his exit.

If anything positive can come from this it is the wake up call the Glazers and Ferguson need. We must bring in someone special and we must do it as soon as possible, if this season in Europe is to be an anomaly and not a more common occurrence.

We’ll never die.

Rio Ferdinand put in a brilliant challenge on Ben Arfa in the box only for the linesman John Flynn to flag for a penalty. Mike Jones, who was filling in for Phil Dowd, had initially rightly indicated that a corner should be awarded, before a discussion with Flynn saw him award a penalty, denying United the three points.

Despite Luis Suarez admitting he called Evra a name in Spanish and the FA charging the Liverpool striker with directing racial verbal abuse at Evra, Liverpool fans have predictably rolled out their usual hero worship for their player.

Fellow Uruguayan Gus Poyet spoke out in defence of Suarez earlier this week, claiming his countryman isn’t racist, rather they “treat people of colour in a different way” back in Uruguay.

“I played with a player, and nobody knew him as Fernando Cáceres,” Poyet said. “Everyone knows him worldwide as Negro Caceres. Is that racist? In England it is but in the rest of the world, in South America or Spain, it’s not.

Some Liverpool fans have quickly claimed that “negro” or “negrito” are not racist terms in Uruguay, in fact, they are words you would use to address a friend.

The Kop: “In Spanish-speaking countries such as Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay where there are few people of African origin and appearance, negro is commonly used to refer to partners, close friends or people in general. It is similar to the use of the word “nigga” in urban communities in the United States. For example, one might say to a friend, “Negro ¿Como andas? (literally “Hey, black one, how are you doing?”). In this case, the diminutive negrito is used, as a term of endearment meaning “pal”, “buddy” or “friend”. Negrito has come to be used to refer to a person of any ethnicity or color, and also can have a sentimental or romantic connotation similar to “sweetheart,” or “dear” in English.

It seems to me if Luis Suarez did use either word it would be more in the context of a term of endearment rather than a racial slur.”

Hold on, aside from the fact it is irrelevant to the FA what terms are or are not seen as acceptable in Uruguay, why on earth would any Liverpool fan think that Suarez was referring to Evra as “buddy” or “sweetheart”? With the pair of them at each other all game, it would be ridiculous to seriously try and claim that Suarez was using a “term of endearment” when talking to Evra that day.

Evra was visibly worked up whenever he came in to contact with Suarez, with the referee having to separate them on a number of occasions. For argument’s sake, let’s imagine Suarez didn’t think there was anything offensive about what he was saying. It wouldn’t have taken him long to work out that what he was calling Evra wasn’t going down very well and he needed to stop. Regardless though, pleading ignorance where racist terms are concerned doesn’t cut it and if Suarez called Evra “negro” or “negrito” he needs to be punished accordingly.

Sir Alex Ferguson recently criticised Liverpool for not doing as United had by obeying the FA’s request not to talk about the case. Kenny Dalglish has astonishingly repeatedly claimed that if Suarez isn’t found guilty, Evra should be punished. If Suarez is found guilty, the Liverpool manager and fans have put themselves in a very embarrassing position in vehemently supporting a racist.

As much as anyone hates Terry, no one should wish for him to have said something racist because that’s fairly sick. Wanting him to get in trouble or wanting him to be exposed, yet again, as a total scum bag is natural, but no one should want any racism in our game. Whatever your feelings on the national team, Terry is still the captain and still represents our country, so to have such a high profile player being outed as a racist should not be a source of happiness for any of us.

However, after the game Terry acknowledged that he had used a racial slur but insisted it was just a misunderstanding between himself and Anton Ferdinand. His statement was jumbled and didn’t make an awful lot of sense but he claimed that he had made his peace with Anton after the game and certainly was not racist.

Then it emerged that the first Anton had heard of any racism was not in the dressing room after the game, but when he was told about the footage at home and that he offered no such accusation to which Terry could respond. This sets alarm bells ringing in regards to how truthful Terry was being with his explanation of being caught saying those words.

Terry then did an exclusive with The Daily Mail insisting that he had actually said “do you think I called you a black cunt?” after a run in with Anton. People turned back to the footage and whilst Terry’s mouth is obscured from view for one second by Ashley Cole’s head, it is clear that his explanation for using the racial slur does not add up at all. There quite simply wasn’t enough time for Terry to be asking the question he claimed he did.

The FA have suspended their enquiries after the police announced they were launching an investigation. In the mean time, with the doubt over Terry’s explanation increasing, some former players, all of whom are black, have rallied around the England captain.

Paul Ince

“He’s not a racist. It’s no excuse to say allegedly what he might have said or what anybody says towards black, white, Chinese. But if you say things in the heat of the moment it doesn’t necessarily mean you are a racist. There was probably no intent on what John Terry allegedly said. As far as I’m concerned, people say something in the heat of the moment but that doesn’t make them a racist.”

Trevor Sinclair

“He’s not racist. If he’s said something that’s not accepted, it wouldn’t be racist, it would be maybe just to try and upset the opposition. I’m not condoning any kind of racist comments but what I am saying is that I don’t think John Terry is a racist. He uses everything he can to try and win a game for his club.”

John Barnes

“I do not believe John Terry is a racist. He could have made that comment but I don’t believe that making that comment necessarily makes you a racist.”

Their responses are absolutely astonishing. How on earth can anyone, black or white, claim that calling someone a “black cunt” is acceptable banter on a football pitch? How can anyone claim that, if in the heat of the moment, the first thing that comes out of your mouth is a racial slur, that it’s not the behaviour of a racist? Either these terms are in your vocabulary or they’re not. You either use them, in the heat of the moment or as banter, or you don’t. To suggest that choosing someone’s skin colour as something to comment on in the “heat of the moment” without that person being racist is ridiculous.

Ince, Sinclair and Barnes may genuinely be of the opinion that what Terry allegedly said does not make him a racist and I’m not suggesting they have any other motive to defend him, but the damage these statements do to the Kick It Out campaign is incredible.

Can a 15-year-old in an academy match shout “black cunt” at their opponent just before they take an unfairly awarded penalty, using the justification Ince, Barnes and Sinclair have given? Can a 25-year-old do the same when playing in a Sunday league game? Can a 30-year-old do the same when paying in a Premier League game? The answer to all these questions should be a very simple “no”. In a day an age when the country is actively seeking to put a stop to all forms of racism, why are these former players saying racial slurs do have a place on the football pitch?

If Terry has said what has been alleged, then he shouldn’t play again. His off field behaviour, even when negatively impacting on the dressing room, has been brushed under the carpet but the same cannot happen here. Who wants their children to see an outed racist as their idol or inspiration?

More importantly though, whether Terry is found guilty or not, there should be a universal condemnation of using the language he has allegedly used. For these former players to suggest racial slurs are acceptable, if used to give an advantage or said accidentally in the heat of the moment, is quite frankly unforgivable.

Kick it out.