London: England striker Jadon Sancho has opened up about the racial abuses that he, Marcus Rashford and Saka faced. All of them missed their respective penalties at the Euro 2020 finals against Italy. Sancho said that "society needs to get better".
After the penalty shootout an artwork in Withington, Manchester was defaced by some English supporters. That mural has been repainted and repaired with messages of love and hope for the 23-year-old striker.
Sancho said, “I’m not going [to] pretend that I didn’t see the racial abuse that me and my brothers Marcus and Bukayo received after the game, but sadly it’s nothing new," on his social media accounts.
“As a society, we need to do better and hold these people accountable,” Sancho added. “Hate will never win. To all the young people who have received similar abuse, hold your heads up high and keep chasing the dream.”
“I was ready and confident to take it. These are the moments you dream of as a kid, it is why I play football. These are the pressured situations you want to be under as a footballer. I’ve scored penalties before at club level, I’ve practised them countless times for both club and country. I picked my corner, but it just wasn’t meant to be this time.”
“I am proud of this England team and how we have united the whole nation in what has been a difficult 18 months for so many people,” he added.
“I want to say a massive thank you for all the positive messages and love and support that far outweighed the negative. It’s been an honour as always representing England and wearing the Three Lions shirt, and I have no doubt we’ll be back even stronger! Stay safe and see you soon.”