Manchester City defender Marc Guehi has shared his thoughts on the Premier League’s No Room For Racism campaign, explaining why he no longer takes the knee before matches.
Marc Guehi is a regular starter for Manchester City under Enzo Maresca.
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He may have only arrived at City in January, but Marc Guehi settled quickly and has started this season as a mainstay of Enzo Maresca’s defence.
On the eve of the UEFA Champions League home clash with AEK Athens, it was Guehi the club put forward to meet the media, just seven months on from his debut in the competition.
Reporters took the opportunity to pick Guehi’s brain on more than just the visit of the Greek champions. With the Premier League’s No Room For Racism campaign in focus this month, the centre-back was asked for his view on how the initiative is going - and about his own decision, taken some time ago, to stop taking the knee before kick-off.
Guehi: Racism is a societal issue and goes beyond football
Guehi gave his assessment of the campaign, welcoming its continued presence while suggesting there is room to take it further. At the heart of his message was the idea that the issue goes much further than the touchline.
“[I’m] not sure, to be honest. The campaign’s still there, which is great. The message is still there, which is great. More can always be done,” the Manchester City star said. “I think we should see how we can move the campaign along.
“I don’t think it’s necessarily a football issue, I think it’s a wider societal issue and football is just that beacon of hope to try and get the message out. Whether more can be done, we’ll try, hopefully with the FA and the league to see what more can be done.”
He is one of many figures in the game to make the point that, while football’s reach gives it a platform, the problem it is confronting is far larger than the sport itself.
Why Guehi no longer takes the knee
The defender was also asked about the gesture of taking the knee; in the weekend’s Premier League ties, he was one of six players across the division to choose to stay standing while others knelt.
Guehi confirmed that he stopped taking the knee some time ago in favour of applauding instead, while underlining his continued support for the message behind the campaign.
“I haven’t been taking the knee for a while now, to be honest. I’d always clap, just because of what that actually signifies,” Guehi explained. “But in terms of if something can be done, hopefully. I hope we can do a bit more, but we’ll see.
“Hopefully the message is still getting out there, which is the most important.”
The question of whether to take the knee has been debated across the Premier League for several seasons, with individual players all entitled to make their own decisions on how best to mark their backing for the cause.
Guehi’s stance, clapping rather than kneeling while maintaining his support for the campaign’s aims, places him among a small number of players who have made the same choice.
Attention turns back to the pitch
Guehi’s immediate focus returns to AEK Athens on Tuesday night, with Manchester City seeking to bounce back in Europe after last week’s 4-2 home defeat to Paris Saint-Germain.
Domestically, Maresca’s side could hardly be in better shape, sitting top of the table on the back of seven straight league wins - the best start to a managerial reign in Premier League history.
A victory over the Greek champions would get Manchester City’s Champions League campaign back in action before attention switches back to the league.