Wenger: Punish the racists

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes a section of Tottenham fans have been guilty of racism towards Portsmouth's Sol Campbell and has urged the football authorities to take action against all types of abuse.

Hampshire Police are in the process of investigating the chanting against Campbell during Portsmouth's match against Spurs last Sunday, and Wenger - who signed the England defender from White Hart Lane in 2001 - said that abusive supporters should simply be banned from matches.

He told The Daily Telegraph: "Abuse can't be tolerated by anybody to anybody in the world. How can you fight against it? By singling out people who do it. You can punish them individually by not letting them into the ground."

He added: "In Spurs' case, I believe it was not only racism - it was disappointed love or what they feel might be more betrayed love.

"Some of them take advantage of that to be a racist and some just showed their aggression against a guy who left their club.

"The abuse only becomes singled out when it is racism but racism is not the only sort of abuse you get. Sometimes stupidity is contagious.

"If you respond to it you become mad and upset. I ignored it because I was old enough to know who I am and who I am not, so it didn't affect me.

"We are in a period where football is a world-dominating sport that has a huge influence on people and that is why we have to give out a vision where we respect values.

"It is difficult to say you should punish a club directly because of two or three idiots in the stand. I think you should make individual people responsible."