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Poll [Poll] Firmino - Holgate incident update

Prefix for Poll Threads

What will be the outcome of the Firmino - Holgate incident

  • Ban for Firmino

    Votes: 6 9.0%
  • Ban for Holgate

    Votes: 9 13.4%
  • No charges for either

    Votes: 52 77.6%

  • Total voters
    67
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The FA are right cunts for their wording here, they should have worded in a way that states Firmino is innocent, not in such a way to suggest that they are unable to charge Firmino, and support Holgates accusation. Shit house institution.
 
The FA are right cunts for their wording here, they should have worded in a way that states Firmino is innocent, not in such a way to suggest that they are unable to charge Firmino, and support Holgates accusation. Shit house institution.

Yup. Also some of the headlines are worded that way also. For example the headline on Espn was "Firmino avoids punishment in..".
 
Holgate should travel the world so that he can inevitably learn such helpful phrases as "son of a whore," "shit in the milk," and "damn you and the whore that made you." After much initial confusion, he'll catch up to what we all instinctively know: he's kindof a cunt.

He won't be doing much traveling with Everton though.
 
This statement by the FA is like when the police say things like "if you feel you've been a victim of rape/abuse, come to us and you will be believed" rather than actually approaching any potential case diligently and objectively. It could set a dangerous precedent. It's probably already well on the way to being fucked, actually.
 
Is there any possibility to plea fro the FA to charge Holgate for the violent incident that was unpunished... not even a yellow card?
 
Holgate should travel the world so that he can inevitably learn such helpful phrases as "son of a whore," "shit in the milk," and "damn you and the whore that made you." After much initial confusion, he'll catch up to what we all instinctively know: he's kindof a cunt.

He won't be doing much traveling with Everton though.

Holgate should apologise. I don't care if he made the accusation 'in good faith'. He's been judged wrong, and he's wrongly undermined someone else's reputation.
 
The FA are right cunts for their wording here, they should have worded in a way that states Firmino is innocent, not in such a way to suggest that they are unable to charge Firmino, and support Holgates accusation. Shit house institution.

Agree 100% but their agenda was never to get to the bottom of what actually happened. With them it's more important to be seen to be right on than it is to do justice.
 
So this was simply Bobbys account Vs cuntfaces account ? At what point do they side with the accusor in such circumstances?

This is probably a rare occasion in which I agree with the FA's approach. Keep quiet, take your time and be objective. Why should the FA imply one of explicitly innocent or a Liar , they were (for once) impartial
 
To be fair to them, it sounds as if they did get some relevant experts, as well as footage, to assess the incident. But then they did the usual fudge with their statement.


From The Times:

Liverpool declared that Roberto Firmino had been “exonerated” after an exhaustive investigation by the Football Association cleared him of racially abusing the Everton defender Mason Holgate.

Holgate had made the allegation during an FA Cup third-round tie between the Merseyside rivals on January 5 and, after an inquiry which lasted 47 days, the governing body said last night that there was in sufficient evidence to charge the Brazil forward.

Firmino admitted insulting Holgate in his native Portuguese as the duo clashed after the Liverpool player had been pushed into the crowd by the Holgate, but categorically denied the claim he had said the words “f****** n*****”.

The FA took statements from 12 players and officials from both teams, as well as Bobby Madley, the referee, and Jon Moss, the fourth official, with none of those individuals corroborating the allegation. In addition, the inquiry employed a Brazilian/Portuguese linguistic specialist and obtained multiple angles of video footage, including broadcast and unseen footage showing the incident, which was assessed by two independent Portuguese speaking lip-reading experts.

The evidence obtained from the experts also did not support Holgate’s allegation. Liverpool and Firmino have remained silent since the claims in order to respect the process, but both released statements last night.

“We thank Roberto for the manner in which he has conducted himself during this difficult process, acknowledging that being subjected to such a serious allegation for this length of time has been hurtful to him and his family,” a club statement said. “Both the club and player were in full agreement from the beginning that if an investigation was required it should be a thorough and robust one. Roberto has co-operated fully with the process and shown a willingness to engage and assist throughout, with the only objective being to discover the truth of what happened. We are satisfied that the outcome of the process has exonerated the player of using any racist or discriminatory language.”

It is understood that Firmino spent several hours at Wembley giving his version of events to the FA, while team-mates Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and James Milner were among those who gave statements. Phil Jagielka, the Everton captain, was also questioned by the FA. Firmino revealed in his statement that he has been subjected to racism in the past and reiterated that he did not aim a racist slur at Holgate.

“As difficult as it has been to remain publicly silent, given the serious and damaging nature of what it was claimed I said during the game, I did so to demonstrate my respect for the process and to allow the issue to be investigated in the most thorough way,” Firmino said.

“It is critical for football that tackling racism and all forms of discrimination is taken extremely seriously. As someone who has experienced racist abuse during my life, I know how damaging and hurtful it can be.

“Now the process is concluded, I would like to place on record, for the avoidance of any doubt, I did not say the word, or a variation of the word, that was claimed and subsequently reported in the media. I did not — and would never — reference a person’s skin colour or culture, by means of insult, during a dispute or an argument.”

Holgate had immediately informed his team-mates, as well as the match officials, of his claims and the FA said that there is “no suggestion of this being an intentionally false or malicious allegation.”

The England Under-21 player is at the centre of a separate FA inquiry into historical homophobic tweets that he is alleged to have sent and which came to light on the night of the game.

Everton said they would continue to offer their full support to Holgate and added: “The club welcomes the FA’s expression of complete satisfaction that the allegation made by our player was done so in absolute good faith and that there is no suggestion of malice or dishonesty on Mason’s part.”



Really poor form by Everton as well as the player. Any decent person who got something like that wrong would apologise unbidden. Then again, we now live in a society where everyone seems to have an inalienable right to traduce other people with impunity.
 
Really poor form by Everton as well as the player. Any decent person who got something like that wrong would apologise unbidden. Then again, we now live in a society where everyone seems to have an inalienable right to traduce other people with impunity.

The FA didnt say Firmino wasn't a rascist, they said there wasn't enough evidence to prove he WAS one.

I doubt they will ever act differently until a player brings about a lawsuit when a sponsor cancels a multi-million pound contract off the back of the FA's actions
 
So this was simply Bobbys account Vs cuntfaces account ? At what point do they side with the accusor in such circumstances?

This is probably a rare occasion in which I agree with the FA's approach. Keep quiet, take your time and be objective. Why should the FA imply one of explicitly innocent or a Liar , they were (for once) impartial
Because innocent until proven guilty is the basis of our justice system?
 
The FA didnt say Firmino wasn't a rascist, they said there wasn't enough evidence to prove he WAS one.

I doubt they will ever act differently until a player brings about a lawsuit when a sponsor cancels a multi-million pound contract off the back of the FA's actions
If I was Firmino I’d sue the fuckers for that statement alone. It’s ridiculous. I’d also sue Holgate for continuing to stay silent about it after it was proven Firmino said no such thing. Twats.
 
Because innocent until proven guilty is the basis of our justice system?
This wasnt in court. It was an allegation made by one individual against the other, the FA have no idea whether Firmino was rascist or no, hence the 7 week wait and outcome.
 
From Bobby F.

"As difficult as it has been to remain publicly silent, given the serious and damaging nature of what it was claimed I said during the game, I did so to demonstrate my respect for the process and to allow the issue to be investigated in the most thorough way.

"It is critical for football that tackling racism and all forms of discrimination is taken extremely seriously. As someone who has experienced racist abuse during my life, I know how damaging and hurtful it can be.

"Now the process is concluded, I would like to place on record, for the avoidance of any doubt, I did not say the word, or a variation of the word, that was claimed and subsequently reported in the media. I did not use any language that referenced race. I did not - and would never - reference a person’s skin colour or culture, by means of insult, during a dispute or an argument.

"There is no place for discrimination on a football pitch, or anywhere else in life for that matter.

"I am pleased after exhaustive reviews of all the evidence, in this specific incident, the matter is resolved."
Wow his command of the English language is brilliant !
 
The FA didnt say Firmino wasn't a rascist, they said there wasn't enough evidence to prove he WAS one.

I doubt they will ever act differently until a player brings about a lawsuit when a sponsor cancels a multi-million pound contract off the back of the FA's actions

Good idea. Thankfully I've not heard any opposing fans singing that stupid 'we know what you are' chant that dogged Suarez everywhere he went, but it could easily have happened, and the FA wouldn't have given a toss.
 
This wasnt in court. It was an allegation made by one individual against the other, the FA have no idea whether Firmino was rascist or no, hence the 7 week wait and outcome.

One doesn't have to be a sceptic. The FA OUGHT to have had 'an idea' he wasn't racist after even the first phase of research they conducted.
 
To be fair to them, it sounds as if they did get some relevant experts, as well as footage, to assess the incident. But then they did the usual fudge with their statement.


From The Times:

Liverpool declared that Roberto Firmino had been “exonerated” after an exhaustive investigation by the Football Association cleared him of racially abusing the Everton defender Mason Holgate.

Holgate had made the allegation during an FA Cup third-round tie between the Merseyside rivals on January 5 and, after an inquiry which lasted 47 days, the governing body said last night that there was in sufficient evidence to charge the Brazil forward.

Firmino admitted insulting Holgate in his native Portuguese as the duo clashed after the Liverpool player had been pushed into the crowd by the Holgate, but categorically denied the claim he had said the words “f****** n*****”.

The FA took statements from 12 players and officials from both teams, as well as Bobby Madley, the referee, and Jon Moss, the fourth official, with none of those individuals corroborating the allegation. In addition, the inquiry employed a Brazilian/Portuguese linguistic specialist and obtained multiple angles of video footage, including broadcast and unseen footage showing the incident, which was assessed by two independent Portuguese speaking lip-reading experts.

The evidence obtained from the experts also did not support Holgate’s allegation. Liverpool and Firmino have remained silent since the claims in order to respect the process, but both released statements last night.

“We thank Roberto for the manner in which he has conducted himself during this difficult process, acknowledging that being subjected to such a serious allegation for this length of time has been hurtful to him and his family,” a club statement said. “Both the club and player were in full agreement from the beginning that if an investigation was required it should be a thorough and robust one. Roberto has co-operated fully with the process and shown a willingness to engage and assist throughout, with the only objective being to discover the truth of what happened. We are satisfied that the outcome of the process has exonerated the player of using any racist or discriminatory language.”

It is understood that Firmino spent several hours at Wembley giving his version of events to the FA, while team-mates Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and James Milner were among those who gave statements. Phil Jagielka, the Everton captain, was also questioned by the FA. Firmino revealed in his statement that he has been subjected to racism in the past and reiterated that he did not aim a racist slur at Holgate.

“As difficult as it has been to remain publicly silent, given the serious and damaging nature of what it was claimed I said during the game, I did so to demonstrate my respect for the process and to allow the issue to be investigated in the most thorough way,” Firmino said.

“It is critical for football that tackling racism and all forms of discrimination is taken extremely seriously. As someone who has experienced racist abuse during my life, I know how damaging and hurtful it can be.

“Now the process is concluded, I would like to place on record, for the avoidance of any doubt, I did not say the word, or a variation of the word, that was claimed and subsequently reported in the media. I did not — and would never — reference a person’s skin colour or culture, by means of insult, during a dispute or an argument.”

Holgate had immediately informed his team-mates, as well as the match officials, of his claims and the FA said that there is “no suggestion of this being an intentionally false or malicious allegation.”

The England Under-21 player is at the centre of a separate FA inquiry into historical homophobic tweets that he is alleged to have sent and which came to light on the night of the game.

Everton said they would continue to offer their full support to Holgate and added: “The club welcomes the FA’s expression of complete satisfaction that the allegation made by our player was done so in absolute good faith and that there is no suggestion of malice or dishonesty on Mason’s part.”



Really poor form by Everton as well as the player. Any decent person who got something like that wrong would apologise unbidden. Then again, we now live in a society where everyone seems to have an inalienable right to traduce other people with impunity.

So the FA's reason for concluding that "there is no suggestion of this being an intentionally false or malicious allegation" is based purely on the fact that Holgate "immediately informed his teammates as well as the match officials" - which has bugger all bearing on whether or not the toerag was lying. And what are they doing about Holgate's original foul? They were clearly bent on exonerating him all along. The experts they consulted were a smokescreen designed to give all this the appearance of being legit.

I'd also bet a sizeable sum that that's why Everton haven't issued an apology either. They're afraid that would turn the spotlight back on to whether Holgate's claim was ever remotely plausible.
 
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One doesn't have to be a sceptic. The FA OUGHT to have had 'an idea' he wasn't racist after even the first phase of research they conducted.

A pound to a penny says they did, and couldn't give a rat's. The genuine rights and wrongs of this lamentable saga were never their priority.
 
Vindicating Firmino would directly suggest Holgate was lying or had malicious intent or whatever. The FA go from investigating racism to being accused of scaring away players from reporting it.
 
Vindicating Firmino would directly suggest Holgate was lying or had malicious intent or whatever.

I don't see why. He could have simply misheard, and there's no logical reason why that couldn't lead to Firmino being vindicated and Holgate not being subsequently accused of malice. I agree the FA probably thought otherwise, because they're a childish and irresponsible and very stupid bunch.
 
Vindicating Firmino would directly suggest Holgate was lying or had malicious intent or whatever. The FA go from investigating racism to being accused of scaring away players from reporting it.

There's also the issue of proving Holgate just made it up entirely and maliciously, didn't actually hear anything at all, and was simply acting very angry and upset in a gigantic Oscar-worthy display, simply to avoid a card for fouling Firmino.

And in true method acting style, continued this performance by telling his team-mates about it, and also repeating the claim via club officials, the governing body and instigating an investigation.

Which is fucking risible.

Alternatively, it could be that he thought he heard something racist aimed at him. But actually didn't.

And that's it.
 
Are we really surprised this took so long and we had no clue what was going on while it happened? They were using VAR to determine the outcome. We're going to get three games worth of injury time at the end of the season. Great way to make up some points.
 
There's also the issue of proving Holgate just made it up entirely and maliciously, didn't actually hear anything at all, and was simply acting very angry and upset in a gigantic Oscar-worthy display, simply to avoid a card for fouling Firmino.

And in true method acting style, continued this performance by telling his team-mates about it, and also repeating the claim via club officials, the governing body and instigating an investigation.

Which is fucking risible.

Alternatively, it could be that he thought he heard something racist aimed at him. But actually didn't.

And that's it.
If that’s what happened, and lip readers as well as others that were around the incident at the time said otherwise, the decent thing to do would be to apologize for putting someone through that ordeal. But he hasn’t. He’s a cunt.
 
If that’s what happened, and lip readers as well as others that were around the incident at the time said otherwise, the decent thing to do would be to apologize for putting someone through that ordeal. But he hasn’t. He’s a cunt.

Which is what Firmino called him in the first place. Sort of.

There's a case to be made that he should admit that he did mishear the slur directed at him by Firmino, and that it contained no racial connotations.
But the issue is that quite a few people seem to think he knew he wasn't racially abused all along, but lied anyway.

Which I don't think is true.
 
There's also the issue of proving Holgate just made it up entirely and maliciously, didn't actually hear anything at all, and was simply acting very angry and upset in a gigantic Oscar-worthy display, simply to avoid a card for fouling Firmino.

And in true method acting style, continued this performance by telling his team-mates about it, and also repeating the claim via club officials, the governing body and instigating an investigation.

Which is fucking risible.

Alternatively, it could be that he thought he heard something racist aimed at him. But actually didn't.

And that's it.

The card he was trying to avoid could and should have been a red one, in the Merseyside Derby, and there's nothing remotely risible about the concept of a liar feeling compelled to continue the lie in order not to be held to account for it.
 
The card he was trying to avoid could and should have been a red one, in the Merseyside Derby, and there's nothing remotely risible about the concept of a liar being compelled to continue the lie in order not to be held to account for it.

So he was lying and his visible anger and very obvious upset was all a fantastic, improvised acting routine? Impressive. He clearly paid attention in his drama lessons.
 
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