Brendon Batson on racism in English football: 'The Premier League are the bullies'

While speaking at the unveiling of a statue of Arthur Wharton - the world's first black professional footballer - former West Brom right back Brendon Batson, who currently acts as an adviser on equality for the Football Association, insisted that racial discrimination still exists in English football.

With only two black managers working in England's top four divisions, the issue of racism in English football has been under the spotlight recently, and having acted as a pioneer for black footballers in the 1970s, Batson believes that the situation has gotten worse in recent years.

"I say the numbers don't lie," Batson said at the unveiling. "A few years ago we had about six or seven, including (Jean) Tegana, (Ruud) Gullit, Keith Alexander, Leroy Rosenior, people like that. We have now got two (Chris Powell at Huddersfield and Keith Curle at Carlisle), so we are going south.

"I have got no proof of racism whatsoever. But something is going on and I don't believe it's good enough to say: 'If you're good enough, you'll get there.' As black players, our talent could not be denied because it was out there, in your face. At the moment there is an exclusion; you can't even get an interview. You are not seeing the numbers."

Batson's comments were largely in response to Jose Mourinho, who said earlier this month that racism doesn't exist in football when it comes to hiring black managers. However, Batson didn't hesitate to call out the Premier League for their lack of action on the issue, and encouraged the FA to lead the way for positive action.

"We've got the 24 national teams here, the home of England's football teams, there are numerous employment opportunities, and the FA need to grasp that opportunity and show the Premier League and the Football League that positive action can bring positive results," Batson said.

"I think the FA can lead on this. The Premier League are the bullies in the playground, we know that. But the FA have got a role to play and I think can take some real positive action with their development teams. Chris Ramsey is with the Under-17s at the moment.

"I think they need to be getting more people from BME to be more involved with their development teams, so they can see that visibility and that will send a really positive message out to the next generation of black players.

"Raheem Sterling is 19 but your career is over in the blink of an eye. You want to put it in his head: 'Maybe I have a future (in the game after playing).' You need positive imagery and positive messages."

Gordon Taylor, the Professional Footballers’ Association chief executive, recently echoed Batson's comments as he called for the introduction of the NFL's Rooney Rule, which is aimed at ensuring black candidates are adequately represented in the pools of applicants for coaching position.