Former Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Akhtar has expressed his concerns over the racial abuse of English players after Italy defeated England in the Euro 2020 championship.
Shoaib Akhtar took to his Twitter and shared a heartbroken picture of footballer Bukayo Saka after missing out on the decisive penalty in the final match.
Following the defeat at Wembley Stadium, English players Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were targeted on social media after they missed penalties.
“The picture speaks a thousand words. Football can be so cruel.”
“I hope that Rashford, Sancho and Saka don’t suffer racial abuse,” the tweet read.
The picture speaks a thousand words. Football can be so cruel. I hope that Rashford, Sancho and Saka don’t suffer racial abuse.☹️#Euro2020Final #EnglandvsItaly pic.twitter.com/hKmHyRaO0p
— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) July 12, 2021
The naysayers and Twitteraties began to racially abuse the English players which has outraged the sports fraternity, with many calling for an end to hate speech on the platforms.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other leaders expressed dismay over the online abuse targeting the England players.
“This England team deserve to be lauded as heroes, not racially abused on social media,” Johnson wrote on Twitter.
“Those responsible for this appalling abuse should be ashamed of themselves.”
Marcus Rashford Responds To Racist Abuse
On the other hand, England’s Marcus Rashford has extended an apology for his penalty shootout miss but said that he will never apologize for who he is after he was subjected to racial abuse.
Marcus Rashford shared a heartfelt note on his Twitter, apologizing for his penalty miss in England’s shoot-out loss to Italy on Sunday.
“I’ve had a difficult season, I think that’s been clear for everyone to see and I probably went into that final with a lack of confidence.
“I’ve always backed myself for a penalty but something didn’t feel quite right. During the long run-up, I was saving myself a bit of time and unfortunately, the result was not what I wanted,” he said.
“I felt as though I had let my teammates down. I felt as if I’d let everyone down. A penalty was all I’d been asked to contribute for the team. I can score penalties in my sleep, so why not that one? It’s been playing in my head over and over since I struck the ball and there’s probably not a word to quite describe how it feels,” wrote the player in his tweet.
— MR14 (@MarcusRashford) July 12, 2021
