von hier

The Fiver's never been bothered to find out the exact ethnic composition of Roberto Carlos. All we know is that the Brazilian (a) seems like a decent chap, and (b) assorted half-wits in Spain have regularly taken it upon themselves to make monkey noises when he touches the ball. So today's photos in El Pais, showing Carlos happily helping out known Real Madrid racist Jose Luis Ochaita, come as something of a shock to the soul. Ochaita is the notorious former leader of the band of big-bellied, small-brained Real supporters known as Ultra Sur. In 1998 he was banned from stadiums for three years for trying to attack a referee. The same year he and seven sidekicks were arrested in Germany for brandishing Nazi flags and swastikas prior to a Big Cup match. Before another Big Cup game against Bayer Leverkusen this season, several Ultra Sur were pictured making Nazi salutes and taunting black players. Ochaita is, to quote the Fiver's clued-up Spanish correspondent: "not just some eccentric fan, he's a really nasty piece of work". Yet today El Pais published a photo of Carlos presenting Ochaita with a signed jersey after Real's 5-0 victory over Racing Santander on Saturday. The paper claims the pocket-sized left-back told Ochaita he should raffle it off to raise funds to cover the Ultra Sur's travel expenses to away matches. This is the same Carlos who earlier this season dismissed racist fans as "people who go to matches just to draw attention to themselves with stupidity". Granted, you could argue that a man who shoots every time he gets within 70 yards of the opponent's goal, usually hitting low-flying aircraft rather than the target, has a history of committing public gaffes. But can he ever have perpetrated one as bizarre as this? Tomorrow he's expected to explain his gesture at a press conference in the Bernabeu. It promises to be fascinating viewing.