Since Bernardo Silva’s racism controversy broke out, many have been waiting for the responses from those close to the player. Guardiola shared his thoughts on the midfielder’s action, which did not go down well with the public, and now team-mate Raheem Sterling has broken his silence on the issue.
The Portuguese ace found himself in a racism storm after posting a tweet in which he compared a picture of team-mate Benjamin Mendy when he was a kid to the mascot of Spanish confectionery company Conguitos. The midfielder eventually deleted that post but a backlash had already occurred, with many accusing the former Monaco ace of racism.
Anti-discriminatory charity Kick It Out slammed the midfielder and the FA are now investigating the player’s actions. The player could be looking at anything from a fine to a six-game ban as punishment if found guilty.
The Citizens ace has written to the FA admitting regret, insisting that he had no ill intentions. Mendy also wrote to the organization in support the Portuguese talent, who is a close friend.
Given Raheem Sterling’s public battle with racism, the English star was bound to be asked his thoughts on Silva’s actions. The Three Lions ace touched on the issue after Man City’s 3-1 win over Everton and the attacker echoed the opinion of John Barnes – that this was not an act of racism.
Sterling launched a defense of his team-mate, brushing aside the incident as a joke between two friends. Although the Englishman understands why many were outrages, he argues that the color of Mendy’s skin was not the punchline, which is key in his eyes.
"It’s a situation between two friends, Bernardo and Mendy," the 24-year-old said (as per the Sun).
"I can see exactly the point where some people can get touchy-feely on it but I feel that in this situation, Bernardo made a joke to his friend. He’s not referred to his skin color or his lips.
"In both pictures, they have both got small heads and the most important thing, for me, is he didn’t refer to his color.
"We all know Benjamin and everybody can see that he is a black lad. We have to be proud to be black as well.
"If someone refers to our skin color with an image, you can’t really be upset about that. We know what skin color we are.
"He hasn’t referred to his color and that’s the most important thing."
Sterling has become a key figure in the battle against racism in football, having been subjected to this heinous form of discrimination during his professional career. It will be interesting to see whether his thoughts on Silva’s controversy will sway opinions on this matter.
