Harry Kane and Gareth Southgate have called on UEFA to take a firm stance against Bulgaria following the racist abuse that England's players were subjected to from sections of the crowd during their 6-0 win in Sofia on Monday night.
The match had to be halted twice in the first half as England's players and coaching staff reported the chants being aimed at their black players by the crowd. It appeared that the game may not be completed, but despite the abuse continuing after the interval, England opted to remain on the pitch until the end.
Southgate was saddened that such a situation was allowed to play out, and now wants to see UEFA investigate the matter and take appropriate action. The England manager is also set to make personal checks on his players following the unsavoury scenes.
Speaking after the game, as quoted by the Daily Mail, he said: "The sad reality is that we weren't able to stop incidents happening, so now the investigation has to ensure we can take that next step, because it's remarkable to have such a spotlight on a game and still see all that happen."
Monday's game was already played in a partially closed stadium due to previous incidents that have happened during Bulgaria's games, with some questioning whether the national side should be allowed to play in their capital city in the future.
When put to Kane whether that would be a suitable punishment, he responded: "Maybe that's a step forward."
It was announced on Tuesday that Bulgarian FA President Borislav Mihaylov had resigned from his position after a damaging night for the national team both on and off the pitch.
UEFA president Alexander Ceferin was also quick in responding to the night's events, insisting that the governing body would take meaningful action, but that they needed the help of national governments to improve the situation moving forwards.
"UEFA's sanctions are among the toughest in sport for clubs and associations whose supporters are racist." Football associations themselves cannot solve this problem. Governments need to do more in this area. Only by working together in the name of decency and honour will we make progress."
Source : 90min