GREEN IN THE DOCK

Football commentator Alan Green has been criticised by media watchdog Ofcom for suggesting that a black player had a poor grasp of the English language.

Ofcom upheld a complaint about BBC Radio Five Live's coverage of a Manchester United v Arsenal match. Green suggested that, in a dispute with the referee during the 28 March match, the player said "me no cheat".

"The suggestion that a black player was incapable of speaking grammatical English was inappropriate," Ofcom said.

"We believe that the experienced presenter should have been more alert to the implications of his comment."

Ofcom said the incident was particularly serious "given the drive to eradicate racist attitudes in football".

The BBC said Green's "ill-judged" remark about footballer Eric Djemba-Djemba was made "in the heat of a live broadcast and was meant as irreverent banter". It described the commentator as "a campaigning anti-racist".