Hughton urges Uefa to be 'brave' over rascist abuse

SOCCER:FORMER REPUBLIC of Ireland international Chris Hughton, the only black manager in the Premier League, has called for Uefa to be "brave" and order national associations found guilty of racist abuse from supporters to play behind closed doors or be banned.

England’s under-21 victory in Serbia on Tuesday was overshadowed by unsavoury scenes at the final whistle with scuffling on the pitch amid accusations of racism from the stands towards England left-back Danny Rose.

Uefa last night announced charges against both the Serbian football federation (FSS) and the English FA for the improper conduct of their players, and against the Serbs for “alleged racist chanting” by fans. The FSS has now revealed an internal investigation is also under way. The English FA has sent Uefa a full dossier of evidence, including video footage and a catalogue of incidents which they reported to match officials during and after the match, with FA general secretary Alex Horne questioning whether they will play matches in Serbia again.

Norwich manager Hughton maintains now is the time to take stern action. “This gives Uefa a really good opportunity now to stamp their authority on this situation. It is not the first time,” said Hughton. “There is an opportunity now for them to be big and brave, to stamp down on it and I sincerely hope they do, because it deserves it. What we have seen over the last few years are fines which are so minimal, they are no deterrent. The only way for it to be a deterrent, certainly abroad, is to play games behind closed doors and ban teams.”

The Serbian FA president Tomislav Karadzic has apologised for his players’ involvement in the ugly scenes but insisted they were not solely to blame. “The incident saw a fight which included individual players and members of the coaching staffs from both teams. I have sent an apology on behalf of our association as we hosted the match, not that I think it was only our fault.”