There seems to be some confusion as to whether Austria even asked UEFA to take the knee before kick-off in their Euro 2020 match against Italy.
It kicks off at Wembley Stadium on Saturday at 20.00 UK time.
Italy are expected to confirm they will not take part in the Black Lives Matter protest, while David Alaba suggested Austria would adhere.
However, now Tuttomercatoweb correspondents who attended the press conference claim that the gesture may well not take place anyway.
They suggest Austria have not requested a moment before kick-off for the symbolic gesture and that Alaba’s comments were mistranslated.
It’s claimed instead he said they would take the knee if the opportunity arose, but did not specify they will do so tomorrow evening at Wembley.
The anti-racism protest made its way to football after the murder of George Floyd in America, having initially been introduced by Colin Kaepernick, who wanted to find a respectful way of protesting during the American national anthem in 2016.
While the gesture was made by everyone in the weekend after Floyd was killed, it has continued to be a regular fixture ahead of games in England, including the national squad.
🇦🇹 Facciamo chiarezza sulle parole di David #Alaba (un breve thread per spiegare)
1 – La traduzione in italiano
Ovviamente il fatto di inginocchiarsi penso che sia un segnale molto chiaro. Siamo tutti d’accordo su questo argomento lo faremo un’altra volta contro l’Italia (..)
— Marco Conterio (@marcoconterio) June 25, 2021