In light of the recent allegations surrounding Karim Benzema and that sex tape, I’m pretty glad we didn’t end up signing the Real Madrid man.

The forward has now hammered another nail into his own coffin by insisting that his use of a homophobic slur was ‘amiable’.

During the court case concerning Benzema’s involvement in Mathieu Valbuena’s blackmail over his sex tape, Benzema told Judge Nathalie Boutard that his use of the word “f****t” was just something that the new generation says these days.

“After that ‘fa**ot’, you can say that to everyone, to your friends, your mates,” he said. “For me, for the new generation, it is amiable.”

The fact that the Frenchman would not only use the word but then attempt to justify its use is repugnant and feels like a huge step back for an industry rife with homophobia. Striking these slurs from our language is something the LGBT+ community has been working hard to do but the player’s brazen use of it just shows how far we have to go.

It’s not ‘just a word’ if it demeans a group of people fighting against its use and I’m willing to bet the people who do believe it’s harmless have never had to be on the receiving end of such oppression.