aintforever

Alonso is not black, he doesn’t take the knee. Please keep up.

My point is simple - unlike the SA cricketer, they are not forced to do anything.

Inconsistency, brilliant! From the person who thinks the Premier League are forcing the players to take the knee, despite the fact that some players are choosing not to take the knee.

I've watched plenty of players taking the knee on the TV.

Still much higher profile even if some TV channels don't show it.

I thought it was the Premier League that were forcing them to do it? I guess the EFL are as well then

Probably a bit of both. Definitely were not ordered to do it by the PL as you bell-ends believe.

I'll go out on a limb and say that virtue signalling to a global audience of millions will have more effect than to a few thousand in some Championship stadium. Surely even you can understand that.

Blimey it's not rocket science. They stopped doing it in the Championship because they felt it was losing impact - The anti-racism message is stronger in the Prem because it is watched by millions around the globe, and because their fellow teams were all doing it it made sense to join in.

no

Promotion to a league which is viewed around the World, and seeing that as all the other clubs were doing it, a united approach would be most effective. If the Brentford players were so against it what would stop 2, 3 or more players doing exactly what Toney does?

You're the naive one if you think the PL are ordering the players to take the knee, it would be leaked out and be a PR disaster. The Daily Mail and other gammon rags would have a field day. The fact that some players are choosing not to do it make your whole theory complete bollocks.

Yeah brilliant, just ignore every word they said and make up your own interpretation in your little gammon head. So the PL forced them to take the knee, except for Ivan Toney - he's alright he can do whatever he wants.

Here's Brentford's full statement, weirdly, no mention of being ordered to do anything by the Marxists at the PL: Brentford FC can confirm that our players will take the knee before all First Team matches in the coming season. Our players and staff held meetings to discuss whether or not to take the knee at kick-off, having not done so since February. We believe that in the upcoming season the collective cause of tackling discrimination and racism will be best served by acting in unison and solidarity with all our fellow Premier League teams, as was outlined in a statement from the Premier League yesterday, which can be seen here. A joint statement from the football authorities followed this morning. Taking the knee will not on its own solve the problem of racism but it will continue to draw attention to the discrimination that exists within football, as well as society generally. We all saw the support that the act of taking the knee received from fans before matches during Euro 2020. With fans now back at stadiums for the upcoming season we want to play our part in keeping the fight against discrimination at the forefront of the agenda. As well as taking the knee, we will continue to invest our time and energy into taking concrete steps towards making football more respectful, fair and equal for everyone. We will continue to be at the forefront of the fight against abuse and hate on social media platforms. Our actions as a club will also demonstrate our commitment to equality. The Club respects the rights of all individuals to show their opposition to discrimination and racism in whichever way they feel is most appropriate to them. During our meetings to discuss these issues, Ivan Toney told us that he would prefer not to take the knee and will continue to make his own personal statement before matches this season. Brentford FC stands fully behind Ivan’s decision and will continue to support him in any way we can.

"We believe that in the upcoming season the collective cause of tackling discrimination and racism will be best served by acting in unison and solidarity with all our fellow Premier League teams". You obviously fail to understand the "we believe" part.

They stopped taking the knee in the Championship because they felt it was losing its impact, not because they were scared of some Marxist takeover. They obviously feel that showing a united front in the Prem would have more effect.

He probably wanted to explain himself. Do you think the PL should force players not to take the knee then?

Yes but you bell-ends tried to make out any player not doing it would be hounded out the game. The vast majority of fans either respected his decision, didn’t give a shite or probably even notice.

Yeah of course. Looks like it was one of our own who came up with the idea, doesn’t mention it being forced in him by the Marxists at the PL anywhere. https://extra.ie/2020/12/28/sport/soccernews/mcgoldrick-taking-the-knee

It’s all about showing a united front with their colleagues. You have been way off the mark from day one over this, during the pandemic I remember you lot saying there was no way they would take the knee when fans were in the stadium - now they do it to applause every week.

Eh! It’s not compulsory in the Prem you bell-end, it’s always been an initiative driven by the players which is what I have said all along.

No one has said they want it to be compulsory, the SA cricket authorities appeared to have handled it very badly. I guess given their history they are keen to make a statement.

If Newcastle are going to offer silly money then it might be a good opportunity for us and him.

I watched AFC Bournemouth the other week and not one player took the knee, no one cried. no one is forced to do anything.

Brilliant! So after a year and a half of players taking the knee you have finally found someone who was forced to take the knee and it’s nothing to do with football but a cricketer from the most racist country on the planet.