Connect with us

Sports

RACISM: Zaha ‘will continue to stand tall’ after becoming first EPL player not to take the knee

Published

on

Wilfried Zaha has called for more to be done in the fight against racism in football as he refused to take a knee at the start of a game on Saturday.

The Crystal Palace forward had long been commenting on the routine of taking a knee before game, saying the gesture no longer passes its intended message.

Premier League clubs started taking a knee before kick-off to support the Black Lives Matter movement, which rose to prominence following the death of George Floyd in the United States in May 2020.

But Zaha stood tall before kickoff in the Premier League game between Palace and West Brom at the weekend.

The 28-year-old becomes the first English topflight player to refuse to take a knee, as he promised he would ‘continue to stand tall.’

Read Also: EPL: Aina, Maja’s Fulham beaten as Man City go 17 points clear; Iwobi’s Everton lose

“My decision to stand at kick-off has been public knowledge for a couple of weeks now,” Zaha said.

“There is no right or wrong decision, but for me personally I feel kneeling has just become a part of the pre-match routine and at the moment it doesn’t matter whether we kneel or stand, some of us still continue to receive abuse.”

Ivory Coast international Zaha joins Championship clubs Derby, Bournemouth and Brentford in no longer taking part in the gesture pre-match.

Earlier this season, Queens Park Rangers also stopped the gesture after director of football Les Ferdinand said its impact had “been diluted”.

Meanwhile, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters has said taking the knee will continue until the end of the season but there will be fresh talks with players over the most effective way to move forward.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now