After much consideration, I have decided it is time to bring in a new hoddle hero. This time I’m bending the rules a little bit, and I’ll explain why shortly.
I’ve been thinking a lot about this one lately. The racial abuse Tel suffered last week was disgusting. On Friday I offered my support by featuring him on the Friday hoddle.
On Tuesday, Tel gave his first message since he was the subject of abuse:
“After the last a few days have passed, I wanted to thank you for all your messages of support! I was also disappointed about Wednesday night but racism has no place in our society. Every day is a learning curve, and every day is a lesson. I know where I come from, where I started and none of this will bring me down. With work and humility, respect reigns. Thank you all”
And days after the Tel incident, Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo was racially abused by a fan during their first game of the season at Anfield.
Here is what Semenyo had to say about it:
I kept going back and forth of whether or not I should feature Tel here. After a quick chat with a friend I was convinced that this gesture, no matter how small, is still more than doing nothing. And so that’s where I landed.
But I’m also going to do a little bit more. Those of you who’ve been around here might remember how my predecessor, Pardeep, would feature a “Stay Informed, Read This” section at the bottom of every hoddle to highlight this issue in sports writ large.
So I’m going to continue that for at least the rest of this month - maybe beyond (I haven’t decided that part yet). These links could be throwback hoddles from Pardeep, throwback links that she shared at the time, or it could include newer ones that I see circulating on the internet.
I will also confirm here that Tel will remain the hoddle hero until after the transfer window closes on September 2 or who knows, maybe even a day or two longer. In this case I’ll be breaking the traditional hoddle hero rules to celebrate a player who should receive our support.
From Nov 19, 2021: “Edouard Mendy criticises media outlets over use of his image in stories about Benjamin Mendy”