Rangers consider STOPPING taking the knee ahead of Old Firm derby amid Glen Kamara incident

Rangers players will consider whether to stop taking the knee prior to today’s Old Firm derby with Celtic as they await action against the racist abuse suffered by Glen Kamara and Kemar Roofe.

Rangers are demanding ‘unequivocal’ action from UEFA after being angered and sickened by the abuse suffered by Kamara and Roofe this week. The squad has discussed if the pre-match protest really sends out a strong enough message.

Kamara insists he was called ‘a monkey’ by Slavia Prague’s Ondrej Kudela during Thursday night’s Europa League tie at Ibrox. Kudela refuted the allegations and has since countered he was punched by Kamara in the tunnel after the game.

Rangers will consider whether to stop taking the knee as they wait for the consequences of alleged racist abuse towards Glen Kamara (right) and Kemar Roofe 

UEFA are investigating after Kamara claimed he was called ‘a f***ing monkey’ by Slavia Prague’s Ondrej Kudela (left)

In a further depraved twist, sick images posted by Slavia Prague ultras on Friday evening showed them holding a banner saying ‘Kamara – just a n*****’. The images were eventually taken down but Kamara and Roofe have been targeted on social media with further vile abuse.

UEFA opened an investigation into Thursday night’s ugly scenes but admit they have limited power over social media platforms, prompting Kamara and his teammates to join the clamour for greater punishments to be handed out and such social media accounts to be deleted more swiftly.

Kamara’s legal representative Aamer Anwar told Sportsmail: ‘Though he has listened to Slavia Prague’s robust denials regarding racism, my client has yet to see any condemnation from the club regarding the images posted by their fans.

Slavia Prague ultras held up a vile banner calling Rangers midfielder Kamara a ‘n*****’

Rangers’ Kemar Roofe (left), who was sent off in the Slavia Prague clash, received further racist abuse on social media after the game

‘We are sick of the freedom given to these abusers on social media platforms.

‘When issues of copyright arise, posts are taken down almost immediately, yet what quick steps were taken here when we see a banner with the N-word left on view? It gives opportunity for further abuse and incites hatred. No-one should be subjected to that.’

Mr Anwar revealed that, despite statements to the contrary from Slavia Prague, Scottish police have yet to receive any criminal complaint regarding Kamara’s alleged attack on Kudela following Thursday’s game.

Rangers travel to rivals Celtic on Sunday lunchtime having already been crowned champions

He also underlined the importance of manager Steven Gerrard’s unwavering support and that Kamara had received messages of solidarity from across the game including many from Celtic fans.

‘Glen is extremely grateful to Rangers and the outstanding, unconditional statement of support from his manager Steven Gerrard. He is also extremely grateful for messages from many Celtic fans wishing him well. Despite the great football divide it’s good to know there is a unity in this fight. The real onus now is on what happens next.

‘If UEFA and other organisations are really serious about giving racism the red card we need to see more than just condemning it, we need to see tough sanctions being deployed. We are seeing senior players opting not to take the knee because it is seen as tokenism. It will continue to be tokenistic unless we see any real change.’ 

Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha has stopped taking the knee as he feels it is insufficient

Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha has already underlined that he no longer thinks taking a knee is sufficient protest against racism. 

The sentiment has been echoed by Championship sides Brentford and QPR while Manchester United and other Premier League sides have been vocal in their demands for greater clamp downs on social media.

All eyes will be on newly-crowned Scottish champions Rangers at Celtic Park today and their players are eager for the correct message to be relayed. 

Kamara has received support from various quarters including former QPR and West Ham defender Anton Ferdinand who has spoken candidly in recent months about his battle against racism.

Last month, The Premier League, FA, EFL, WSL, Women’s Championship, PFA, LMA, PGMOL and Kick It Out all co-signed an open letter to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook founder, chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, demanding immediate action earlier this week.

Facebook-owned Instagram announced new measures, including the removal of accounts to prevent abusive messages on its platform, while Twitter vowed to work closely with the football community to tackle the problem. 

But many have criticised the firms over the length of time it takes them to act when racist abuse is posted.

Manchester United and England striker Marcus Rashford suggested deleting accounts should be a more straightforward process after witnessing the abuse suffered by teammates Axel Tuanzebe and Paul Pogba. 

‘It should be easy to stop, just deactivate the accounts,’ said Rashford. ‘We know that it’s very easy to make four or five accounts but if you have to block them all, then block them all.

‘That’s on the social media companies themselves. If they see anyone being abusive in any way, their account should be deleted immediately, that’s how you’d deal with it.’

Several high-profile footballers such as Marcus Rashford have called on social media to protect footballers from abuse such as racism