Rio Ferdinand: Racism in football is at a tipping point after incidents in Paris and London
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ByEurosport
Updated 09/12/2020 at 09:44 GMT
Racism has continued to dominate the agenda in football with incidents in Paris and Bermondsey highlighting the significant problem the game is facing. Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand believes serious action needs taking from football's authorities to eradicate racism and all forms of discrimination from the sport.
Demba Ba
Image credit: Getty Images
Rio Ferdinand says that football has reached a “disturbing tipping point” as alleged racism overshadowed football on Tuesday night.
Tuesday’s Champions League match between Paris Saint-Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir was abandoned after both teams walked off the pitch following an alleged racist slur by Romanian fourth official Sebastian Coltescu towards Pierre Webo, Basaksehir's assistant coach.
On the same night Millwall fans, who were heavily criticised for booing their players who took the knee on Saturday, applauded as their team and visitors Queens Park Rangers stood by an anti-racist banner before their clash on Tuesday, with the west Londoners' players taking the knee to celebrate a goal in the match.
Ferdinand has called for football’s governing bodies to make a big statement on racism in football to eradicate it from the game.
"We're at a disturbing tipping point," former England international Ferdinand told BT Sport.
"We've got Millwall, the PSG game today, all in the same week. Not a week goes by at the moment without an incident involving race.
We're at the point now where something needs to be done, we're saying it all of the time, but the powers that be within this game need to make a huge stand.
UEFA responded to the incident in Paris, saying: "Uefa has - after discussion with both clubs - decided on an exceptional basis to have the remaining minutes of the match played tomorrow with a new team of match officials.
"A thorough investigation on the incident that took place will be opened immediately."
PSG playmaker Neymar posted a picture of himself on Twitter alongside the caption: 'Black Lives Matter'.
Team mate Kylian Mbappe expressed his support for Cameroonian Webo. "SAY NO TO RACISM," he wrote on Twitter. "WEBO WE ARE WITH YOU."
Former Australia striker John Aloisi was angered by the incident but praised the action taken by the players.
"It is very powerful. Let's hope it's a turning point," Aloisi said on Optus Sports' coverage.
"I played with Pierre Webo – a great guy – to see him get so angry. It hurts."
Additional reporting from Reuters.
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