FA looks into second racist abuse claim regarding Emre
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Your support makes all the difference.The Newcastle United midfielder Emre was yesterday facing a second investigation into claims of racism made against him. The Football Association is to look into claims that the 26-year-old Turkey international abused the Bolton striker El-Hadji Diouf during his side's 2-1 Premiership defeat at St James' Park on 15 October.
Emre's agent, Ahmet Bulut, has insisted the allegations are untrue. He said: "This is not a true story. Emre is very upset about the allegations and is confident he will clear his name."
An FA spokesman said: "We will be contacting El-Hadji Diouf to see if he wishes to provide us with a statement."
The latest development came as Emre awaits a date for his personal hearing after formally denying a charge of using racially aggravated language during Newcastle's 3-0 defeat at Everton on 30 December, when he became involved in heated exchanges with Tim Howard, Joleon Lescott and Joseph Yobo at Goodison Park after his side had been awarded a penalty.
The manager Glenn Roeder later visited the home dressing-room in an effort to smooth things over - but Roeder strenuously denied claims he attempted to cover up accusations of racism.
Newcastle have given their full support to their £4m signing from Internazionale, although they were not commenting on the new allegation. Roeder said of the incident at Goodison Park: "At the conclusion of the match, I went into the opposition dressing room to apologise for what had been an ugly incident on the pitch. I was doing the decent thing because I am sensitive to the image of the sport. At no time did I make any apology for racist comments because Emre had told me clearly what he had said and, while not being particularly pleasant, it was not racist."
Emre has protested his innocence in interviews in his home country, citing his friendship with former Inter colleague Obafemi Martins in his defence. The midfielder, who is said to be devastated by the allegations, has not played for the Magpies since the 2-2 draw with Manchester United on New Year's Day through injury.
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