By Karolos Grohmann
FOXBOROUGH, Massachusetts, June 26 (Reuters) - World Cup winner and TV pundit Bastian Schweinsteiger on Friday rejected claims his comments on African football were racist, saying he was merely delivering an analysis of a playing style, with Germany's state broadcaster backing him.
Ivory Coast coach Emerse Fae had said on Thursday that Schweinsteiger's comments in which he had called African football "wild" and "unorthodox" could be labelled racist.
"I was talking about football,
not people," Schweinsteiger said in a statement through broadcaster ARD to Reuters. "This is a football analysis—nothing more, nothing less. I certainly did not intend to offend anyone."
Schweinsteiger, a 2014 World Cup winner with Germany, is a pundit at the World Cup for ARD. Last week, before Germany beat the Ivorians in their second Group E fixture in Toronto, he said that Germany needed to be "prepared for it to be unpredictable at times".
He said Ivorians played "African football", which he characterised as "a bit unorthodox sometimes, a bit wild, not quite as tactical".
"Bastian Schweinsteiger commented on his expectations regarding the Ivory Coast team's style of play, summarising his experiences and observations from recent matches," said ARD Sports coordinator Axel Balkausky in the statement.
"The discussion was about a footballing assessment, not the people themselves. I cannot detect any form of racism in his remarks or his choice of words."
"If the Ivory Coast coach, Emerse Fae, were to speak directly with Bastian, I am certain his suspicions would be dispelled in no time. Perhaps such an opportunity will arise later in the tournament," he said.
COACH FAE DISAPPOINTED
Asked for a reaction after Ivory Coast beat Curacao 2-0 on Thursday to finish runners-up behind Germany and advance to the last 32 at the World Cup, Fae told reporters he was disappointed by Schweinsteiger’s comments.
"When you know football the way he knows it, then it’s odd that he would speak that way ... which we could call racist if we were calling a spade a spade," said Fae. "But that's the way it is. Nowadays, we live in a world where everybody is free to say what they think.
"I can't change his perspective. I can't change the way he talks. But all I can do is show on the pitch that Africa is not just the physical game. We are very technical as well and very tactical."
"He was a worldwide star but has kind of been forgotten a little bit, so he's trying to create a buzz. Good for him, if that's what he thinks. He’s free to do so. But we will move forward and we'll try to ignore that," Fae added.
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Ed Osmond)
