Kick It Out has criticised Millwall boss Alex Neil after he questioned the decision to stop his side’s Championship match against Swansea City following an accusation of racist abuse. The anti-racism campaign group said player welfare should always take precedence over the momentum or flow of a match, and called on managers and leaders to set the tone with their language.
Tuesday’s game at The Den was halted for seven minutes midway through the second half after reports of discriminatory chants directed at Swansea substitute Ji-sung Eom. The Metropolitan Police is investigating the alleged abuse.
When referee Edward Duckworth was alerted to the accusations, he held lengthy discussions with both sets of coaches and paused the match while waiting to pass a message to Millwall’s safety officer. After the stoppage, an announcement was made over the speakers at The Den confirming there had been alleged chants of racism and that police were working to identify any offenders using CCTV.
Neil told BBC Radio London after the match that the incident needed to be dealt with, but argued stopping the game did not deal with anything and only killed momentum. He said he would not get involved in the incident itself, leaving it to the authorities, but added that he did not see the point of stopping the match. Neil also expressed frustration at the wait to restart, saying he wanted the game played, and suggested the matter would be dealt with after the event anyway. Millwall went on to concede a 90th-minute goal and lose 1-0, and Neil admitted: “If we score, I probably don’t feel this way, let’s be honest.”
Kick It Out said it was disappointed to hear reports of racist abuse towards Eom. The organisation said both clubs had condemned the incident and that it was positive Millwall and match officials followed the right protocols so action could be taken to identify anyone responsible. It added that protocols are in place to help match and security officials respond appropriately, ensuring players are protected and key details are captured so accountability can follow, regardless of how long it takes.
Millwall said they were aware of an alleged, individual incident of discriminatory abuse towards a Swansea City player during the second half. The club stated it operates a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of discriminatory abuse and that any individual found to have engaged in such behaviour would face the strongest possible action.
Swansea City head coach Vitor Matos praised the referee and Millwall’s club staff for their responses. He said the referee followed the protocol for such situations and did the right thing, and that Millwall did the right thing by announcing there is no place for that sort of thing. Matos said he was happy with how it was handled but really sad that it happened.
Kick It Out has campaigned for more than 30 years to eradicate racism from football.