England head into the final of Euro 2024 against Spain hoping there’s no repeat of the penalty heartache they suffered three years ago against Italy, or the racist abuse that followed.
Former Three Lion’s player Nedum Onuoha has been talking to YouTuber Eman Balogun a.k.a SV2, for ±«Óătv Other Side of the Story, about that Euro 2020 final and the impact some fan's reactions online had on England’s black players.
He said: "I'll never forget, we were playing against Serbia, and I heard some monkey noises. So I turned around and it was a lot of the Serbia fans. But as I turned round, more people started doing it."
“I think like anyone who’s felt some level of abuse, you don’t know how to respond to it. It’s probably the most taken aback I was in any football game I played in.”
Understanding the Impact
Onuoha has been sharing his experiences for ±«Óătv Bitesize’s news and media literacy project Other Side of the Story, which is aimed at helping young people understand the impact headlines and social media abuse can have.
Reflecting on the abuse England defender Danny Rose received against Serbia five years later, Onuoha added: “You’d like to be in a position where no-one has to go through that. But once you’ve seen it happen once, it shouldn’t be happening again and again, and again.”
Playing, 'Two Headlines That Changed My Life', the Manchester City Academy graduate also talked about what it was like to be on the pitch during arguably the most famous Premier League moment of all-time – Sergio Agüero’s last minute goal to win the 2012 Premier League title.
"Looking back, I didn't realise how big a game that was till I heard people speak about it afterwards. It was just a crazy day and the way that it panned out, like, it's one of the most stressful games I've ever been involved in.”
To find out more about how opinions can easily become polarised and abusive watch this video or for more Euro quizzes go here.
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