Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has reaffirmed his belief that players taking the knee is still "having an impact" in the fight against racism, but respects Chelsea star Marcos Alonso 's decision not to partake.
Alonso opted not to kneel before matches in September and claimed the gesture, introduced by NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick in 2016, was "losing strength."
But the vast majority of Premier League players remain committed to taking the knee and Henderson believes it is an "important statement" to make.
"Everybody’s entitled to do what they will feel comfortable doing," the 31-year-old told GQ.
"I know Marcos is against any form of racism, so we’re all fighting for the same thing here and we all have the same message.
"But, for myself and the players at Liverpool, I think we are still in favour of it and that it is still having an impact."
Henderson, who has also been campaigning for LGBTQ rights and anti-cyberbullying, pointed out two of England 's recent World Cup qualifying matches away from home as examples of why players should be taking the knee.
"You know, if I look at the international games that England played recently, away to Hungary and in Poland, I definitely feel it is an important statement for us to make as a team," the ex- Sunderland midfielder explained.
"It might be something that changes in the future, but as long as we are still talking about it and we are still fighting racism, it should carry on."
Hungary were hit with a two-match stadium ban and £160,000 fine after Raheem Sterling and Jude Bellingham were the subject of racist abuse by spectators in Budapest's Puskas Arena.
Poland, meanwhile, were not punished by FIFA after England claimed defender Kamil Glik had racially abused Kyle Walker in Warsaw five days later, marring the 1-1 draw.
The decision was down to "insufficient evidence," and Poland media officer and team manager Jakub Kwiatkowski told Mirror Football : "The English FA said there had been a racist remark made but Glik says that is completely not true.
"I know the players and they have not done that and nor would they. We completely deny any allegations of wrongdoing."
On Twitter, PZPN president Cezary Kulesza later revealed: "I made a decision that the Polish Football Association will apply to FIFA to punish those who have unjustifiably accused Kamil Glik of racist behavior during the match against England.
"I was convinced from the outset that these allegations were completely wrong, so we will officially intervene."
But English football and wider society still harbours issues with racism, particularly following the final of Euro 2020 this summer,
Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were subject to vile messages on social media, having missed their penalties in the shoot-out.
When asked how he looked back on the tournament, Henderson admitted: "To be honest, that sort of abuse isn’t really anything new.
How did Henderson perform for Liverpool against Atletico Madrid? Choose your player ratings below.
"I think that this has been happening for a while now and we, as players, have been speaking about it for a long time. But I think the overall experience has got to be a positive one.
"For everyone – the players and for the country as a whole – getting to the final of the European Championships was a massive achievement.
"It may have ended in disappointment, and the abuse directed at some of the players was awful, but I still think of it as a positive achievement."
See the full feature in The GQ Heroes Issue available via digital download and on newsstands Friday 5th November.
