Former Scottish player Graeme Souness said on Monday he had no regrets describing football as a “men’s sport” after Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur, which has drawn criticism in the UK.
At the end of Sunday’s Premier League match between the two London clubs, the 69-year-old former Liverpool captain and now a commentator said: “It’s a men’s sport again. Like, with the men fighting and the referee letting things go.”
The match, in which only three players were given a yellow card, was marred by an argument between coaches Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel, who were sent off shortly after the final whistle.
Souness’s comments sparked controversy, but the former player, known for his masculine style in the 1970s and ’80s, did not correct his words on Monday in comments to Talksport radio.
“I’ve championed for years the idea that referees play an important role in the success of the Premier League,” he said.
“We have to pay attention to what we say these days and I haven’t done well in this aspect, but we look like other leagues. My comments yesterday said we got our game back. It’s the kind of football I remember,” said the three-time Champions League champion (1978, 1981 and 1984) ).
The words of Souness, who was also manager of Liverpool between 1991 and 1994, angered England’s players, a few weeks after the women’s team title in the European Cup was organized at home.
Eni Aluko, former England international commentator and commentator, tweeted: “Football is football. A player for men, women, boys and girls. Very simple.”
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