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John Barnes

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The Five Weirdest Things Ever Thrown Onto A Pitch

 

WHEN Villarreal fans taunted Barcelona’s Dani Alves by throwing him a banana, it was not entirely surprising.

Spain does, after all, have a history of this kind of racist goading, including such notable incidents as the monkey chanting directed at England players during the 2004 international in Madrid….

 

Throw2

 

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Posted: 29th, April 2014 | In: Flashback, Key Posts, Sports | Comment


Brazil v England: the ten most interesting encounters

WITH the renovated Maracanã stadium reduced to well under half its previous capacity, and finally ruled safe for England’s match against Brazil – and with the record standing at 11 wins for Brazil, four for England, and nine draws – we look back at ten of the most interesting encounters…

1956: England 4-2 Brazil

Hungary may have thrashed England 6-3 and 7-1 a few years earlier, and England may have been unceremoniously dumped out of the 1954 World cup by the USA, but as far as most people were concerned, the Empire Stadium at Wembley was still the home of football.

This was Stanley Matthews’s day, and his domination of the legendary full-back Nilton Santos was probably the deciding factor in winning him the first Ballon d’Or. A notable achievement in itself, and even more so when one considers that he was 41 years old.

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Posted: 1st, June 2013 | In: Flashback, Key Posts, Sports | Comment


John Barnes says racism in football is a thought cime

JOHN Barnes wants to talk about racism in football to Daily Mail readers. Racism in football is so rare that a man in the crowd making a monkey noise can be arrested, and a player racially abusing an opponent leads to a ban that occupies the national news (see Liverpool’s Luis Suarez). Even the accusation of racial abuse can lead to a court case and a relatively successful England manager quitting before a big tournament (as with Chelsea’s John Terry).

Says Barnes:

When Stuart Pearce selects his England team to face Holland on Wednesday, it will reflect modern society.

Indeed, football reflects society. It does not, as David Cameron would have use believe, feature the white working leases leading society into race riots if the elite do not inflict control.

There will be a number of black players starting the game for their country, maybe six or seven, but so what? To me it no longer carries any significance.

So. Why mention it, then? Why count the number of black players? Do football fans notice the black faces anymore? Hasn’t hard work and the players’ skill smashed the colour bar?

I will not turn on the television and start counting the number of black faces in the team – we have moved beyond that to investigate deeper issues.

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Posted: 28th, February 2012 | In: Sports | Comment