NEW Sunderland manager Paolo Di Canio has tonight defended himself against criticism of his controversial past in which he described himself as a fascist.

The 44-year-old head coach said comments he made in an interview in 2005 were taken out of context and manipulated by the media.

It came as anti-fascist groups across Europe called for him to clarify his views, saying there was no place for extremism in the sport.

Sunderland AFC has also publicly backed the new boss.

Di Canio, who replaced Martin O’Neill after the side lost 1-0 to Manchester United, said: “I expressed an opinion in an interview many years ago.

“Some pieces were taken for media convenience. They took my expression in a very, very negative way but it was a long conversation and a long interview.

“It was not fair. I know it is a part of my job to do interviews because I am well-known, but sometimes it suits their purpose to put big headlines and a big story.”

He said the thought of him as a racist was "absolutely stupid, stupid and ridiculous".

He added: “The people who know me can change that idea quickly. When I was in England my best friends were Trevor Sinclair and Chris Powell, the Charlton manager. They can tell you everything about my character.

“I don’t want to talk about politics because it’s not my area. We are not in the Houses of Parliament, we are in a football club. I want to talk about sport.”

When Di Canio’s appointment was announced on Sunday, the club's vice-chairman David Miliband, who is quitting politics to take a job with a charity in America, said he would stand down in light of the new manager’s previous political statements.

Di Canio reportedly called Italy’s fascist dictator Mussolini "a very principled ethical individual" who was "deeply misunderstood" and in 2005, while playing for Lazio, he was pictured making a raised-arm salute to a group of supporters.

Sunderland’s chief executive officer Margaret Byrne said the reaction to Di Canio’s appointment had been "disappointing".

She said: “Anyone who has met Paolo and spoken with him personally, as we did in depth before making this appointment, will know that he is an honest man, a man of principle and a driven, determined and passionate individual.

“To accuse him now, as some have done, of being a racist or having fascist sympathies, is insulting not only to him but to the integrity of this football club.”

Earlier in the day Unite Against Fascism’s joint national secretary Weyman Bennett said his appointment was an insult to the people of Sunderland who died fighting fascism.

Mr Bennett said: “It’s simply not true that you can say you agree with fascism and that’s okay. It is something that isn’t acceptable.

On his blog, Hope Not Hate co-ordinator Nick Lowles said: “The club’s excellent history of opposing racism and intolerance has been severely undermined by this appointment.”

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