Liz Truss said footballers should boycott a Russian final and Gary Lineker’s response said it best

Foreign secretary Liz Truss has pledged to make it ‘as painful as possible’ for Vladimir Putin if Russian continues to threaten Ukraine.

You wouldn’t know it, though, given Boris Johnson’s entirely underwhelming so-called ‘barrage’ of Russian sanctions announced so far.

Perhaps Truss was thinking about football, after she called on Premier League footballers to boycott this year’s UEFA Champions’ League final if it goes ahead in St Petersburg.

‘If I was on an English team, I would boycott it!’

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss says if an English team makes it to the Champions League final in St Petersburg they should boycott the match.@NickFerrariLBC pic.twitter.com/sfq21y43M0

— LBC (@LBC) February 23, 2022

And it prompted no end of comment, as you might imagine.

1.

Conservative MPs spent the entire summer telling English players to "keep politics out of sport". Quite a change of heart. https://t.co/OuwkP92Crc

— Colin Millar (@Millar_Colin) February 23, 2022

2.

What a surprise. Put the ‘ responsibility’ on players, rather than the governing bodies.

Like when Matt Hancock tried to shame footballers during the pandemic saying they should take pay cuts and contribute to the efforts. Then lambasted Rashford when he fought for school meals

— Seb Ate (@Mrbaiti) February 23, 2022

3.

Well said Liz, footballers need to stick to politics. https://t.co/44vjSVm8mG

— HENRY MORRIS (@mrhenrymorris) February 23, 2022

4.

Ah so now we’re in favour of political gestures eh? Got it…

— Kaylee Brown (@wozbot1982) February 23, 2022

5.

"why won't Marcus Rashford do sanctions?" asks British government doing basically no sanctions https://t.co/qYhBLuDCTE

— Alex Kealy (@alexkealy) February 23, 2022

6.

So let us get this correct: footballers, such as Marcus Rashford and @GNev2, should keep their noses out of politics when criticising Govt decisions affecting millions of UK citizens, but should be doing the work of the politicians when it comes to Russia and potential war?!!

— Robert Usher (@RobertJUsher) February 23, 2022

7.

The Conservatives should try boycotting Russian money and influence.

Last year they were all telling us to keep politics out of football, so which is it in or out?

— John (@john76867892) February 23, 2022

8.

Amazing to see Tories shift from insisting that footballers like @MarcusRashford shouldn't get involved in politics to arguing that they should take more meaningful action against Vladimir Putin than the actual government.

— James O'Brien (@mrjamesob) February 23, 2022

But Gary Lineker surely said it best.

Put the pressure on young footballers to take a tough stance on Russia, as the government doesn’t take a tough stance on Russia. https://t.co/TOd2kqi2jY

— Gary Lineker 💙 (@GaryLineker) February 23, 2022

READ MORE

Dan Walker took Liz Truss down with her own Instagram and it’s fabulous

Source Twitter @LBC @GaryLineker