Premier League: Romelu Lukaku questions impact of taking a knee in battle against racism

Chelsea’s star striker Romelu Lukaku has questioned the impact of the kneeling gesture in the fight against racism, saying that cases of racism are repeated in football, despite the fact that players send a message.

Lukaku’s Chelsea team mate, Marcos Alonso, this week said that he had stopped taking the knee because the gesture was “losing a bit of strength”.

Lukaku said the players and the administrators can take stronger positions to weed out racism from the sport.

“I think we can take stronger positions, basically. Yeah, we are taking the knee, but in the end, everybody’s clapping but… sometimes after the game, you see another insult,” Lukaku said in an interview to CNN.

The Belgium international also urged social media companies to consult with Premier League players and find ways to clamp down on racist abuse online.

“The captains of every team, and four or five players, like the big personalities of every team, should have a meeting with the CEOs of Instagram and governments and the FA and the PFA… how we can attack it straight away, not only from the men’s game, but also from the women’s game,” he said.

Chelsea, who overcame Aston Villa on penalties in the League Cup on Wednesday, host Manchester City in the Premier League on Saturday. It will be an opportunity for both the sides to lay down an early marker and Lukaku will be key to the Blues chances, having already scored 3 league goals in 4 matches after joining the club from Inter Milan.