Oliver Glasner insists Marc Guehi is “against discrimination and any abuse” when asked about the player's decision to write on his rainbow armband.
The Crystal Palace defender – the church priest's son – last weekend he wore the Stonewall armband in his team's 1-1 draw with Newcastle.
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After being warned by the Football Association over the news, he wrote with a smiley face on his rainbow armband at Portman Road during his team's 1-0 win over Ipswich on Tuesday.
The armbands will be sent to clubs to be given to Premier League captains to wear at games against Newcastle to show their support for LGBTQ+ inclusion in sport.
When Glasner spoke to Amazon after the game, he was asked about his captain's decision.
“I think we should calm it down,” he said. “Everyone knows Marc, everyone knows that he is a great player, he is a great personality. He’s a very humble guy.”
“He wore that. It's LGBT and now it's all about integration, no discrimination and also about Marc. I think we’re all on the same page.”
“We are in sport and in sport we are always against discrimination and any kind of abuse, and so is Marc.”
According to the International Football Association Board (IFAB), “initiative slogans/emblems promoting the game of football, respect and integrity” are permitted.
However, it is forbidden to write “political, religious or personal slogans, statements or images” anywhere.
Ipswich captain Sam Morsy was also in the spotlight after opting to give up the rainbow armband entirely. The Tractor Boys cited his religious beliefs as a reason for refusing to wear them.
Egyptian international Morsy is a practicing Muslim.
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Speaking about the couple's decisions regarding the rainbow armbands, talkSPORT's GameDay host Adrian Durham said on Tuesday night: “What is Morsy's message to gay fans or players as captain of Ipswich Town Football Club? What is he trying to tell them?”
“That needs to be sorted out and if it doesn’t comply with Ipswich club policy or Premier League policy then Ipswich Town have an issue to sort out. They must ask whether their captain is suitable for the task of fulfilling all the roles required of him as captain.
“Being captain means more than throwing a coin into the center circle before the game. It means more than just yelling at your teammates. It's about representing the club. So does your captain not wearing the armband reflect the feeling of the club?”
“Has Kieran McKenna thought this through properly? Why not make someone else with the rainbow armband captain for the games?”
So Morsi's message to the LGBTQ community needs to be made clear and then Ipswich needs to move on from there.
“The same goes for Guehi, who wrote all over the rainbow armband. If Guehi's goal was to deface and devalue the message of the Rainbow Bandage and Rainbow Shoelaces campaign, then we have to ask ourselves why he would do that. Can he explain that to Stonewall?” ?
“Could he explain that to a gay Palace fan face to face, I wonder? If his message is that he wears the armband and supports the campaign, but at the same time loves Jesus, then I'm actually okay with that. I'm not sure why.” I had to label the whole armband though.
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“In both cases, as Premier League captains, both must make their position clear and if that means they have to give up the captaincy because they are not suitable for the role at the club, then so be it.”
Former Lionesses star and current talkSPORT co-host Lianne Sanderson agreed the captains need to make their position clear.
“It’s interesting because I think people have freedom of speech,” she said. “They can say whatever they want and people can say, 'Oh, you know they shouldn't have to wear it if they wanted.' I think Marc Guehi is similar to Morsy. I think they're both wrong when I'm being honest.
“Marc Guehi did that, I think it was wrong. I think you know him when he wrote “You Know I Love Jesus” on his armband. That's interesting because I'm not really a religious person, Adrian.
“But I think it depends on how someone perceives the Bible, and I think that's the direction they take it. And I love the fact that you said those things, Adrian, because people don't want to talk about those things.”
“I think it's easy for people to say, 'Oh yeah, you would say that because you're gay,' but that's not reality and I agree that that's how people feel. I don't think anyone needs to wear an armband all the time.” Time to prove they support our community.
“To be honest, I want the campaigns to last longer than a month, and I think sometimes that's just a symbolic act, but it hurts our community if players don't want that. Now you're in England and this is the campaign, so do this.” The same as when I go to Qatar, I respect that culture.
“Qatari people love me. Yes, there may be different people who have different opinions on such situations, but I respect this culture. I think, you know, it's a massive kick in the teeth that they did that, but I think Marc Guehi did that to prove a point.
“So I think they need to come out and have something to say. I really do. You are the leaders of the club and you are right. It’s not just about tossing the coin into the center circle.”
“It's much more than that and I think it impacts our community and it's unfortunate that people still think that way. When I wore an armband like the one I saw on John McGinn the other night, I thought, 'That's really powerful,' but I thought the days were over, Adrian, when this was a talking point because it was just is an armband but means so much to our community.
“So I have a split opinion on whether I think players need to do X, Y and ZI, if I'm honest I think they should want to.”
And former England striker Dean Ashton believes Guehi and Morsy's moves have diminished the positive impact Stonewall's Premier League season has actually had.
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However, he is convinced that their moves do not mean that they are “strongly opposed to the inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in sport”.
“Well I think that’s a great point in terms of captaincy itself because ultimately that’s the person we look to,” Ashton said. “We are looking at two players. We don't look at the eleven players. We're looking at the captains because that armband certainly plays a role in this campaign and the reason you're choosing to either not wear it or write on it is that you're actually making your point.
“But I also think at the same time you have to take into account the fact that some certain players have been like that their whole lives and it might be part of their religion.”
“If they choose not to do something, other players who are not the captains may fall in the middle and may not want to openly support a campaign, but that doesn't mean they are ultimately completely against it.”
“That's why I think sometimes we have to be careful that just because someone doesn't do something, that automatically means they're totally against it. But at the same time I think you’re right, there needs to be some clarity.”
“If they do that, then I think it's really important that everyone understands why and then has some perspective on it. Right now it’s just up in the air for anyone to guess.”
“Then it's about that and not about a lot of other players who are more than happy – we've talked about John McGinn – and other players who are happy to openly support the campaign and then that somehow gets overlooked.”
Durham concluded: “I agree that clarifying the individual point of view is everything, and I believe it can be easily resolved: if a captain doesn't want to wear it, you give it to another player who does want to wear it and he will Captain.” .”
Jean-Philippe Mateta's goal and Palace's 1-0 win catapult them out of the Premier League relegation zone.
