MX23RW : Wednesday, November 27 05:37:58| >> :120:6494:6494:

PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor accuses clubs of preventing racism peace talks

Taylor hits out at 'tribalism' within clubs
© PA Photos
PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor says that he tried to resolve the racism issues between Luis Suarez, Patrice Evra, John Terry and Anton Ferdinand behind closed doors.

Professional Footballers' Association chief executive Gordon Taylor has revealed that clubs prevented his attempts to bring players involved in high-profile racism cases last season together for face-to-face discussions.

Taylor is referring to Liverpool striker Luis Suarez's alleged racial verbal attack on Manchester United captain Patrice Evra as well as Chelsea captain John Terry's alleged racial abuse towards Queens Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand.

"I tried to put [the players] together but I found that very difficult to do without the backing of the clubs," Taylor told The Telegraph.

"The minute that both occasions happened I was in touch with the clubs and the players and immediately it was extremely difficult. It is tribal and they were putting the wagons round.

"The problem lies in the fact that players are not just human beings but players of value belonging to a club and [the clubs] feel they owe the players loyalty and need to be united and solid. If the club is not seen to defend them when they're in trouble they've got themselves into a difficult position."

Terry was acquitted of a racially-aggravated public order offence. However, the Football Association, who issued an eight-match ban to Suarez, can still take action against the England international.

ID:35871: cacheID:35871:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2583:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Luis Suarez
Read Next:
Rodgers: 'Suarez looking forward to season at Liverpool'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1210112481631
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Fulham125341717018
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle125341313018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd124441313016
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham124351519-415
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Ipswich TownIpswich121651323-109
19Crystal Palace121561017-78
20Southampton121110924-154


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!