Patrice Evra speaks out on racist abuse and how to combat it
PUNTERS for racist abuse towards French player Julien Goullup (pictured) at West Ham United’s training ground have been condemned by midfielder Julien Evra.
“It is a nightmare,” Evra said. “I have to work very hard to train.
“I have been to clubs in France, but if I can’t stay in a normal way, what is the point?”
The 23-year-old spoke out after he was attacked by a member of the public on a bus on Monday.
“I didn’t even know what happened,” Evra said. “I was not aware at all what was going on at that stage.
“Somebody came up to me and was insulting me. I could smell alcohol and it was obvious he had some problem. I said to him: ‘You are drunk, man! Don’t touch me!’
“He said: ‘I was touched by a French footballer’ and I said: ‘You’ve touched me with your hands.’
“We went to this guy’s house, the one who had been touched. Because he was a fan of my, and we had a long chat about French football. I said to this guy: ‘I’m not a racist, but I swear to God I don’t want this to go on.’
“The guy was drunk and his wife was trying to get him to go to bed. I got him out of the house and he told me the story for the first time, because she was not saying anything.
“He said: ‘He touched me. He touched me with his hands, he threw me down and I fell on the ground, and when he stood up with his back against a car, I ran away.’
“They gave him a lecture, but he said it wasn’t true. He said: ‘The other guy stood up with his back against the wall and I ran away.’ It can happen anywhere in society.
“I went back to the police station, but they couldn’t help me at all. I went back to the club and the police said: ‘It’s our problem, you can go or find somewhere else to train.’
“I said: ‘I can’t do that. I’ve got to