‘Sadly it's nothing new’ – Sancho opens up on racial abuse

The

bound winger, along with

Marcus Rashford

and

Bukayo Saka

, missed their penalties in the European Championship final 3-2 shootout defeat to

Italy

.

The three Black players were targeted on social media after the final, with the racial abuse prompting a police investigation and country-wide condemnation.

Speaking for the first time since England's defeat,

Sancho

thanked supporters for their positive messages.

Sancho said on Instagram

: "I'm not going pretend that I didn't see the racial abuse that me and my brothers Marcus and Bukayo received after the game, but sadly it's nothing new. As a society we need to do better, and hold these people accountable.

"Hate will never win. To all the young people who have received similar abuse, hold your heads up high and keep chasing the dream. I am proud of this England team and how we have united the whole nation in what has been a difficult 18 months for so many people. Much as we wanted to win the tournament, we will build and learn from this experience going forward.

"I want to say a massive thank you for all the positive messages and love and support that far outweighed the negative."

Sancho has apologized to his teammates and fans after the missed penalty, but has vowed to bounce back with his national team.

He added:

"I've had a couple of days to reflect on Sunday's final and still feel a mix of emotions. I would like to say sorry to all my teammates, coaching staff and most of all the fans who I let down. This is by far the worst feeling I've felt in a long time.

"It's hard to even put into words the real feeling, but there were so many positives to take away from this tournament though the defeat will hurt for a long time. My first thought before going into any football match is always "How can I help my team? How am I going to assist? How am I going to score? How am I going to create chances?" And that's exactly what I wanted to do with that penalty, help the team.

"I was ready and confident to take it, these are the moments you dream of as a kid, it is why I play football. These are the pressured situations you want to be under as a footballer. I've scored penalties before at club level, I've practiced them countless times for both club and country so I picked my corner but it just wasn't meant to be this time.

"We all had the same ambitions and objectives. We wanted to bring the trophy home. This has been one of the most enjoyable camps I've been part of in my career so far, the togetherness of the team has been unmatched, a real family on and off the pitch.

"It's been an honor as always representing England and wearing the Three Lions shirt, and I have no doubt we'll be back even stronger! Stay safe and see you soon."

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