England suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Italy in the Euro 2020 final, losing in a penalty shootout after missed kicks from Bukayo Saka, Jadon Sancho, and Marcus Rashford. Former Manchester City defender and BBC pundit Micah Richards has expressed his concerns about the potential for social media racism and toxicity if Saka experiences a similar situation against Spain.
Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, Richards was asked about the perception of black players being labelled ‘English’ when successful, but ‘black’ when they aren’t. He responded, “Yeah. And that is a shame. Saka has shown such resilience to come back from missing that penalty. We can all talk about Bellingham and his bicycle kick and he’s the player with the most exciting potential on the squad. But in terms of consistent performance – getting the ball, giving an assist – Saka is the one we can rely on. If Saka misses a penalty on Sunday I’m not even going to look at social media. If a person of colour misses then I will delete all social media for a week because I can’t stomach it. We should all be together.”
England hasn’t been in top form despite reaching the Euro 2024 final, struggling through the group stage. However, as the tournament progressed, the team’s chemistry improved, and they now stand 90 minutes away from glory.
The Arsenal forward will be in action on Sunday at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, aiming to lead the Three Lions to their first major trophy since 1966.