Kick It Out chair Sanjay Bhandari has hit out at “lazy racist stereotyping” after a Crystal Palace scout’s comments about South Asian families on LinkedIn.
Michael Verguizas, who is lead pre-academy scout at Crystal Palace, wrote: “Asian families put all their efforts into education plus their [sic] more aligned to the game of cricket… Don’t think it’s pushed in their families or in their culture…Boys following this sport are far and few in this industry”.
The comment was criticised on social media after initially being called out by online fans’ platform Desi Ballers, who questioned how long Verguizas has held these views, adding “this ain’t even unconscious bias”.
Bhandari, who has just been appointed MBE for services to sport in the King’s New Year’s Honours List, offered his own assessment.
He wrote on social media: “Wow. This is some lazy racist stereotyping that does not align with grassroots participation data from someone with authority over the player pathway… is he a relic from the 1970s?”
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Sanjay Bhandari says urgent action is required to improve British South Asian representation in English football
Researcher and academic Dr Stefan Lawrence said: “Yet further evidence of the nonsense that exists in football discourse about [South] Asian players. People in the game should be doing much better by now. No excuses.”
Kick It Out’s chair added: “We know these things are said and the attitude pervades. They rarely leave an actionable evidence trail. The unusual bit is having the confidence/ignorance to commit that thought to writing in a public platform.”
Azeem Rafiq pictured with South Asians in Football campaigners Yunus Lunat, Abu Nasir and Butch Fazal (L-R) at the Sporting Equals Awards
Campaigner and former cricketer Azeem Rafiq also criticised the comments on X, formally known as Twitter.
He said: “Welcome to 2024 – these people decide the future of our kids.”
Verguizas, who has previously worked in youth talent identification roles at Tottenham, Arsenal, Brentford and Charlton, was responding to former Cheltenham Town manager Chris Robinson on LinkedIn.
Sky Sports News has contacted Crystal Palace for comment.
FA Council Member Yashmin Harun BEM wrote on social media: “This is exactly the point I make in every discussion – the gatekeepers within football are some of our biggest barriers, and they need to be outed for the views they hold.
“Unfortunately he’s not the first and he won’t be the only one with these views…”
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