In light of the raging cases of racism in Spain, Pep Guardiola claimed that he is not optimistic of a possible eradication of the practice in La Liga.
Guardiola is not expectant that racism would be nipped in the bud in Spain after Vinicius Jr faced racial abuse during Real Madrid’s encounter against Valencia at the Mestalla.
The Brazilian threatened to exit the turf after monkey chants were directed at him during the second half of the clash.
Valencia have afterwards been fined €45,000 and a partial stadium ban for five matches.
However, they have only one home game this season meaning the punishment would also progress in the first four matches of next season.
Seven men have also been arrested by Spanish police officers for several racial abuses directed at Vinicius.
Four of those men were remanded in custody on suspicion of hanging an effigy of the Brazilian from a bridge in Madrid last January.
Police officers also stated that three of the men are a “radical group of fans of a Madrid group” that were previously placed as “high risk”.
Three other men were arrested in Valencia last Tuesday in connection with the racist abuse targeted at Vinicius Jr during Real Madrid’s 1-0 defeat against Valencia.
Comments of Pep Guardiola on racism in Spain
When asked if La Liga should take a cue from the English Premier League with regards to curtailing racial discrimination, Pep Guardiola said: “They should. Here they are so strict on fighting racism. They know what they have to do.
“This is a problem everywhere, thinking we are better than our neighbours, we are better than the other one.
“For all generations everywhere. Our ancestors come from migrants, come from wars, come from dictatorships you have to move from other countries.
“Build families there and come back to where you’re born.
“The problem is that there is racism everywhere. Not just for gender but for colour.
The former Barcelona manager added: “Believing that our language is better than the other one, our country is better than the other one.
“As much as you travel in other countries, you realise we are the same, with the same fears, with the same good things.
“We need to accept the diversity like a human being, but right now, we are far away from that. Hopefully we can get better in Spain but I’m not optimistic.
“There are a lot of black people stepping forward to defend what they should not have to defend.”
“Hopefully justice can help to do it but in the same time is it going to change anything in Spain?”
The man who has previously been accused of racism by one of his former players indicated that he is not hopeful of a change in sight.
In 2018, Yaya Toure gave an inflammatory interview to France Football accusing Pep Guardiola of racism and saying he doesn’t like African players.
Toure who left City in 2018, implied that the Spaniard denied him a send-off which he should have received.
Yaya Toure said: “He stole my farewells with City, a club where the fans are magnificent.
“I would have liked to leave with emotion from this club like Iniesta or Buffon. But Pep prevented me.
The Ivorian added: “He was cruel to me, Do you really think Barcelona could have done that with Iniesta?
“I came to wonder if it was not because of my colour. I am not the first to talk about these differences in treatment.
“In Barça, some have also asked the question. Maybe we Africans are not always treated by some in the same way as others.
“When we realise that he often has problems with Africans wherever he goes, I ask myself questions.”
Pep Guardiola offering his response months later on the comments of Yaya Toure emphatically denied the allegations.
Speaking with TV3, he said: “It’s a lie and he knows it.
“We were together for two years and now this is when he says it.
“He never told me face to face.”
Additionally, Pep Guardiola said in 2020 that white people should apologize for the treatment of black people.
He said that on a night when Premier League players wore the slogan “Black Lives Matter” on their shirts.
Guardiola speaking after Manchester City’s 3-0 victory over Arsenal in 2020 said: “White people should apologize for the way we treated black people in the last 400 years.
“I feel ashamed for what we have done for black people around the world, not just America, the problem is everywhere.”
“We should send a thousand million messages for the black people. I’m embarrassed and ashamed of what the white people have done for the black people.
The ex-Bayern Munich boss added: “Just because you are born a different colour of skin, how do people think they are different to the other one?.
“All the messages are positive and we have to fight, Everything we can do to make it conscious, it is not acceptable.
“We have to do a lot of things for the black people which we have not done so far.”
Despite different spectrum of opinions over his treatment of black players, the Spaniard still maintains his stance that racism must be nipped in the bud.
However, he isn’t optimistic of things turning out for the better soon with regards to the Spanish La Liga.
