The Athletic reports that on Sunday, Man Utd were due to wear an Adidas jacket that was in support of the LGBTQ+ community before the game against Everton. However, as defender Noussair Mazraoui "refused" to wear the jacket, his teammates stood by him and didn't wear one either.
The Athletic says that Mazraoui didn't want to wear the jacket "citing his Muslim faith as the reason."
His teammates then chose to not wear the jacket so that Mazraoui "would not be the only one seen publicly to be refusing to wear it. The decision was taken a matter of hours before the game on Sunday."
The article goes on to say that apparently "not everyone in the dressing room was happy with this decision."
Man Utd released the following statement with regards to their stance on the LGBTQ+ community:
“Manchester United welcomes fans from all backgrounds, including members of the LGBTQ+ community, and we are strongly committed to the principles of diversity and inclusion.
“We demonstrate these principles through a range of activities, including support for our Rainbow Devils supporters’ club, and campaigns to celebrate our LGBTQ+ fans and combat all forms of discrimination.
“Players are entitled to hold their own individual opinions, particularly in relation to their faith, and these may sometimes differ from the club’s position."
Final Thoughts
What's the problem (if there is one) with Mazraoui or any other player/person doing something like this?
He didn't ask his teammates to not use the jackets, he just said he isn't going to because of his own religious beliefs. The rest of the squad decided to stand with their teammate and chose to not wear those jackets.
I like this unity from the squad as it shows that they are getting closer to each other.
It's also not as if Mazraoui said or did anything derogatory towards those jackets or against anything to do with the LGBTQ+ community.
He just simply didn't want to wear the jacket because it went against his religious beliefs. Simple.
The Moroccan also doesn't come across as someone who is and to put it bluntly, an arse. He looks like a very reserved and respectful person who keeps to himself and goes on about his business. Mazraoui would also like to be an Imam once his playing days are over.
The word Imam literally translates to belief and it's official definition is: "It is often translated as faith, belief, or conviction. At its most basic meaning, imân is belief in God (Allah), His prophets, revealed books, angels, the Hereafter, and Allah's divine decree", Mosque Foundation.
I hope nothing major comes out of this and that it is just a news story. We don't need any shit going against us at the moment as we seem to be a lot more positive as a club right now thanks to how we're doing on the pitch and to the performances of some of our players, including Mazraoui who is the best of the lot so far this season.
As for the dressing room not being happy with this decision, I don't necessarily care that much but I just like the fact that they were all together with the final decision. Hopefully something small like this doesn't cause any issues between the players and/or staff.
We move on.
I also feel like the whole point of this article is to highlight this fact that Mazraoui didn't want to wear the jacket. I get that reporters gotta report, but if this didn't come out, nobody would've known, which is what I think the point of all the players not wearing the jacket was.
This just puts the spotlight on a player for no reason when it really wasn't necessary. It feels like this article was put out there to create a problem where I don't think there is one.
Background Image: Noussair Mazraoui | Creator: Carl Recine | Credit: Getty Images Copyright: 2024 Getty Images via Goal