Ex-Hearts goalkeeper Zdenek Zlamal makes Scotland war accusation and brands Rangers 'weird'

Zdenek Zlamal in action for Hearts. Picture: SNS

The Czech goalkeeper was speaking on the issue of Sparta Prague fans booing Rangers star Glen Kamara during a Europa League clash last month, when only children attended the match in the Czech capital.

The Finnish midfielder had been subjected to racist abuse by Slavia Prague player Ondrej Kudela last season

Zlamal had been strong in his defence of Kudela, so much so that his views led to a fine from Hearts before he left the club in the summer.

His rhetoric remains strong, accusing Scots of “making war” and, referencing the booing of Kamara by children, claiming kids aren’t aware of racism.

"Nothing good will come of war,” Zlamal told iDnes' Football podcast.

"I will quote Morgan Freeman, 'Racism will disappear when it is no longer talked about’.

"They do the exact opposite. They want to eradicate it, but they do it the wrong way."

He added: "I tried to take it with a grain of salt, but it's starting to bother me a lot.

"They were exaggerating then, but now they accused the children. I have a child and he doesn't know what it is.

"My view is that racism will disappear. The younger generation doesn't know about it at all.

"Nothing good will ever come from hatred. It bothers me that Scotland considers us racists."

Slavia Prague had accused Rangers of being aggressive when the teams met last season.

Zlamal, who played 53 times for Hearts, talked about an incident during the 2018/19 season when he was on the receiving end of a strong challenge from Scott Arfield in a Scottish Premiership clash.

The Rangers midfielder slid in late on the goalkeeper and was red carded.

"When we played against the Rangers, I caught the ball on the line and about two seconds later their player got there.” he said.

"I thought the team is weird. Something's wrong with them.

"When I saw the match, I again stand behind the fact that he did it intentionally. Overall, the way they behaved was not entirely correct."

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