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Ashley Young says England have spoken about possible racism at World Cup

Ashley Young
Image: Ashley Young insists the threat of racism will not put off his family and friends from travelling to Russia

Ashley Young says he cannot predict how he would react to racist abuse at this summer's World Cup in Russia.

There are fears about the potential for incidents of racism to overshadow the tournament, after the Russian soccer federation were fined £22,000 for discriminatory chanting by fans during a game in Saint Petersburg against France in March.

Racist chants were aimed at players, including Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba, during France's 3-1 win over the upcoming World Cup hosts.

When asked if he had concerns over racist abuse, Young said: "Hopefully FIFA, if anything is to come about, they will be able to deal with it.

Ashley Young
Image: England are currently preparing for this summer's World Cup at St George's Park

"Whether it's going to happen, whether you are on the pitch, I'm not sure how you react to it.

"I'm sure we'll talk about it and we have talked about it, in the squad, in what to do and what not to do."

Young confirmed he had family and friends going out to Russia, and said: "It hasn't put them off. It's a World Cup, my first one - of course family and friends want to go to it."

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England face Nigeria and Costa Rica in their two warm-up fixtures before kicking off their World Cup campaign against Tunisia on June 18.

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