Racist remarks earn Aragones paltry fine
MADRID, March 1 (RFEF) - Anti-racism campaigners have condemned as 'pitiful' the £2,060 fine levied on Spain coach Luis Aragones after his racist slur on Thierry Henry and spiteful outburst against British colonialism.
The 66-year-old could have been sacked, but he escaped with a financial penalty equivalent to one day's wages, to the alarm of 'Kick It Out'.
The punishment was the result of a drawn-out investigation into Aragones telling Spain forward Jose Antonio Reyes that he was better than 'that black ****' Henry, his Arsenal team-mate.
Aragones made his comments last October, during a national team training session, with a TV crew capturing the coach's outburst.
The 66-year-old later dug himself deeper into a hole when attempting to justify his remark, by referring to Reyes as 'a gypsy'.
'Kick It Out' spokesman Leon Mann said: 'We expected very little from the Spanish Football Association and are not surprised by this pitiful fine.
'The only positive is there's finally been a recognition that what Aragones said was racist, despite his protests.
'Questions have to be asked as to why the fine is only 3,000 euros (£2,060) when it took such a lengthy process to get to this decision, and why someone found guilty of a racist comment is still in a job.'
He added: 'Imagine what would have happened if Sven-Goran Eriksson had come out and said the same.'
Aragones did apologise publicly for causing offence to Henry after the episode which preceded a World Cup qualifying game against Belgium.
But he also stressed, in the run-up to November's friendly match against England, that his conscience was clear, albeit in a manner which led to further criticism.
'I know who is racist. I remember the colonies. There are some people who have run after them like wolves after prey,' he declared.
While that seemed to be an attack on Britain's past record in Africa, the England players made a public stand in their training session in Madrid, pointedly wearing anti-racism T-shirts.
But the likes of Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o, who played under Aragones at Real Mallorca, have been quick to defend him.
Nonetheless, 'Kick It Out' believe there would have been significant merit in taking a hard-line approach against the veteran of club management who landed the Spain job in July 2004, after another failure by the national team in a major finals, when Inaki Saez's outfit failed to go beyond the group stages at Euro 2004.
'The situation in Spanish football at the moment is desperate,' added Mann.
'The only other positive is that games are now being stopped and some action is being taken as a first step, but the campaigners on the ground are still being ignored.'
The Spanish FA have given Aragones the right to appeal in the next 10 days, however the president of their competitions committee, Alfredo Florez, felt the dig at British history was 'not of great seriousness'.
Florez added, nevertheless, that: 'His declaration was considered racist by many people, especially the English.'
The Spain coach has not made a personal apology to Henry, who was at the centre of his allegedly racist comments, even though the Spanish Football Federation have apologised formally to Arsenal.
Aragones declared in November: 'In my opinion, racism is a question of conscience and I have my conscience clear.
'A lot of black people have also said that. I am a citizen of the world. My job has made me adapt to every city or area where I have lived.
'I have a lot of black friends but I don't understand why people are still talking about the issue.'
The England match was marred by racist abuse of black players, with Ashley Cole and Shaun Wright-Phillips coming in for particularly crude attention, and it was argued in some quarters that Aragones' remarks had not been helpful in that sense.
Spanish football has witnessed several examples of racist chanting in league matches in recent months.
However, the director general of Spain's Upper Sports Council, Rafael Blanco, dismissed the possibility of there being a link between what Aragones said and the crowd's behaviour.
Blanco said recently: 'Luis is not responsible for the fact that there have been outbreaks of racism in stadiums.
'That would be simplifying things and a big injustice.
'He made some comments that are inappropriate for his position and as the law stipulates, it has to be treated by the appropriate bodies.'
The verdict this evening may not appease everyone, with Sports Minister Richard Caborn stating earlier this year that 'there should be absolute zero tolerance' of such remarks.
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