Scott Parker's Burnley, thanks to goals from Lesley Ugochuwku and French substitute Loum Tchaouna, got the better of Leeds United on home soil on Saturday – and the manager of the latter, Daniel Farke, has now spoken out after one of his players refused to take the knee in the Premier League's ongoing fight against racism.
To give his side the lead in the 18th minute, an unmarked Ugochuwku latched onto the end of Kyle Walker's teasing cross before Tchaouna – who was signed from Lazio in the summer and replaced Jacob Bruun Larsen in the second half – picked the ball up, turned and then wrapped his left-footed effort beyond a helpless Karl Darlow.
Although Dominic Calvert-Lewin had little to no impact on the result for Farke's Leeds, his refusal to take the knee during a week when the Premier League fixtures are dedicated to the No Room For Racism campaign has raised further questions about its effectiveness. Farke, in the wake of the 2-0 loss to Burnley, was asked about his striker's actions.
Watch the highlights of Burnley 2-0 Leeds Utd below:
Calvert-Lewin Refused to Take The Knee, Daniel Farke Questioned
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As a way of reiterating their commitment to tackling discrimination, the Premier League chiefs decided to dedicate all fixtures between October 18 and October 26 to the campaign, which includes Burnley's home encounter against Leeds on Saturday afternoon with the act of 'taking the knee' before matches get underway being central to the changes.
A campaign inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, Premier League players first started taking the knee before games in 2020 – but players stopped doing so before every match in 2022, when the Premier League announced clubs would stop kneeling follow consultations with players. The decision that was made by England top flight chiefs was to limit the anti-racism gesture to the No Room For Racism week.
Ahead of kick-off, Calvert-Lewin – who moved to Elland Road from Everton on a free in the summer – was the only player of the 22 to not take the knee. Boos rang from sections of the Turf Moor crowd ahead of the fixture and there were also a smattering of boos heard at the Stadium of Light before Sunderland's 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers got underway.
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Farke, who has been in charge of Leeds since the summer of 2023, was quizzed about Calvert-Lewin's decision to not take the knee. The German tactician, 48, insisted that it's a player's preference and Leeds let their players decide what they want to do, highlighting that Crysenscio Summerville never took the knee during his time at Elland Road. Confirming the club's stance to the Daily Mail, he said:
"It's up to the individual player. We had this taking the knee for such a long time. I remember with Cree [Crysencio] Summerville who never took the knee, and one day I asked, and he said, 'I'd rather stand up against racism,' so everyone has their own ideas. You would have to ask him [Calvert-Lewin]. I wouldn't interpret too much."
Elsewhere, Burnley boss Parker insisted that he was unaware of the boos from the Turf Moor crowd – but the gesture was largely met with support. Nottingham Forest's Matz Sels was also among those not to take the knee across the first set of fixtures this weekend, though the Belgian goalkeeper was merely unaware of the gesture.
England Women, who are managed by Sarina Wiegman, opted against taking the knee before their semi-final against Italy during the Euros this summer after Jess Carter was racially abused online. The Lionesses decided that the message was not being heard.
Earlier in October, Tottenham Hotspur women's team did the same. Captain Bethany England said: "I have spoken to my team-mates at length, and we agree that taking the knee no longer feels meaningful. We are still seeing prejudice and racism, and there is so much more that everyone should be doing."