via DailyMail

Speaking in Dubai on a tour of the Middle East Blatter called for harsher sanctions against racism, but he argued that the ex-Portsmouth and Tottenham man was wrong to leave the pitch.

‘Walk off? No. I don’t think that is the solution,’ said Blatter in Dubai on Sunday. ‘But the Italian federation have yet to provide FIFA with the report detailing what exactly has happened.

‘I don’t think you can run away, because eventually you can run away if you lose a match.  This issue is a very touchy subject, but I repeat there is zero tolerance of racism in the stadium; we have to go against that.’

‘The only solution is to be very harsh with the sanctions – and the sanctions must be a deduction of points or something similar.’