MX23RW : Tuesday, November 12 20:21:37| >> :120:3720:3720:
[monks data]
Zenit St Petersburg
Europa League | Round-of-32
Feb 14, 2013 at 5pm UK
 
Liverpool logo

2-0

Ian Ayre: 'Liverpool players will walk if racially abused'

Ayre: 'Players will walk if racially abused'
© PA Photos
Liverpool MD Ian Ayre says that the club will take "the right action" if their players are racially abused when they play Zenit St. Petersburg on Thursday.

Liverpool's managing director Ian Ayre has said that the team will not hesitate to walk off the pitch if their players are subjected to racial abuse when they play Zenit St. Petersburg in Russia on Thursday.

The Russians host the Reds in the first leg of their Europa League last-32 tie, and Ayre has said that they will take the "right action" if any player is singled out for racist taunts.

"Anything that happens off the pitch, we'll work very closely with the authorities," Ayre was quoted as saying in The Telegraph.

"We'll take the right action. I'll ensure we do whatever we need to do to protect our players.

"I'd much rather we take the incident off the pitch and we deal with it. Obviously the referee has a role to play within that. But we'll be briefing our players on what's acceptable and what's not.

"[Racist behaviour] has been a major concern for us. I wrote to UEFA very recently expressing our concerns – and also to Zenit. The most we can do is make our feelings clear ahead of the game, and hope that we get an adequate response and adequate support on the night."

Back in December, a Zenit fan group wrote an open letter to the club calling for the exclusion of gay and non-white players from the club.

ID:69023: cacheID:69023:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2264:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Wesley Sneijder
Read Next:
Sneijder courted by Liverpool?
>
Read more about Ian Ayre Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS

League Phase

TeamPWDLPTS
1Lazio440012
2Ajax431010
3Anderlecht431010
4Frankfurt431010
5Galatasaray431010
6Spurs43019
7FCSB43019
8Lyon42117
9Rangers42117
10Olympiacos42117
11Bodo/Glimt42117
12Midtjylland42117
13Ferencvaros42026
14Man Utd41306
15Plzen41306
16AZ42026
17Besiktas42026
18Hoffenheim41215
19Roma41215
20Fenerbahce41215
21Elfsborg41124
22Braga41124
23Porto41124
24Slavia Prague41124
25Real Sociedad41124
26Malmo41033
27FC Twente40313
28Qarabag41033
29Union SG40222
30Nice40222
31RFS40222
32Ludogorets40131
33PAOK40131
34Athletic Club00000
35M. Tel Aviv40040
36Dynamo Kiev40040


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!