Tottenham have said they are disgusted that Jayden Bogle was racially abused on social media after Leeds United beat Spurs at Elland Road, and have offered Leeds their help in tracking down the people responsible.
The club put out a short statement on Sunday evening, about a day after the 1-0 defeat. Leeds had already gone public: their right-back received racist messages from four different accounts, and he allowed his club to share them.
Bogle had been at the centre of the biggest talking point of the game, his first-half challenge on Mathys Tel. None of that matters here, and both clubs made the same point.
What did Tottenham say about the abuse of Jayden Bogle?
The Tottenham statement was four lines long and left no room for doubt. “We are disgusted to hear that Leeds United’s Jayden Bogle has been subjected to racist abuse on social media following our Premier League fixture at Elland Road on Saturday,” it began.
“Racism is abhorrent behaviour for which there is no place in football or society. We have offered Leeds United our support in identifying those responsible and we will pursue every available avenue to ensure they are identified and face the full consequences of their actions.”
It ended with a line aimed squarely at anyone who thinks a result or a refereeing call excuses this: “Regardless of club allegiances and on-pitch results, no-one should ever stand alone in the face of this.”
How Leeds responded
Leeds United said they were appalled by the “disgusting, racist social media abuse” Jayden Bogle suffered after the win, and condemned it “in the strongest possible terms”.
The club will work with the Premier League and the relevant authorities to identify the people behind the messages and push for the strongest possible action against them. “Jayden has the full and unconditional support of the club and his teammates, and we all stand with him at this time. Nobody should ever be subjected to racist abuse,” Leeds added.
Why was Bogle in the spotlight?
After 34 minutes, Bogle caught Mathys Tel on the left ankle. Tel tried to play on after lengthy treatment but went down again a few minutes later and was replaced by Dominic Solanke. Roberto De Zerbi called it “a bad injury on the ankle” and said medical checks would show how serious it is.
The VAR checked the challenge and backed the referee’s decision not to send Bogle off. That call split former players and officials, and Spurs plan to write to Pro Ref for an explanation, as we covered in Xavi Simons’ reaction to the decision. Noah Okafor then won it for Leeds on 79 minutes, as our Leeds 1-0 Tottenham report explains.
De Zerbi himself refused to criticise the officials afterwards. “We have full confidence in the referee and VAR,” he told Match of the Day.
Racist abuse of Bogle has nothing to do with the Tel debate
Spurs fans have every right to be angry about the decision, and so does the club, which is why it is going through the proper channel. Arguing about a tackle is part of football. Sending a player racist messages is not, and it never will be.
That is what makes Tottenham’s statement worth more than the usual words. It came from the side on the wrong end of the result and the decision, and it was clear that the anger over Tel stops at the referee’s report. If the people who sent those messages turn out to have any link to Spurs, the club has promised to go after them, and that is exactly the right stance.
The focus for De Zerbi’s squad now shifts to the international break and then Ipswich at home, with Tel’s scan results the next thing everyone at N17 is waiting on.
