Wednesday 27 March 2019 12:24, UK
England U21 players Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Dominic Solanke say players must speak out against racism, after senior players were subjected to racist abuse in Montenegro on Monday.
England's 5-1 win in Podgorica in the European Qualifiers was marred by racist chanting by a section of home fans, as UEFA eventually charged Montenegro with racist behaviour.
England manager Gareth Southgate revealed he heard racist chanting directed at Danny Rose after the defender was booked late into stoppage time and said the incident would be reported.
Solanke, who netted in England U21s' defeat against Germany U21s on Tuesday night, defended Sterling for his cupped-ear celebration and called for action to be taken against those responsible.
"I think when people speak up about it a bit more comfortably now, that could help a lot," Solanke said.
"You can see some of the boys' interviews after just expressing how they feel, Raheem silenced them with a goal and if the boys keep doing well hopefully people can take action."
England U21s team-mate and Everton forward Calvert-Lewin also said Sterling did the right thing by shrugging off the abuse with his celebration.
"Of course there's no place for racism in the game," Calvert-Lewin said.
"Raheem is a top player and he's on flames at the moment and there's no better way to answer that kind of criticism than to score goals and celebrate the way he did.
"I had a big smile across my face when he did that, so I'm over the moon for him."
Watch on Sky Sports News the new episode of the Tackling Racism series on Wednesday at 7pm, as our panel discuss what more can be done to stop racism in grassroots football.
