Be like Doku and kill with kindness

Empathy does not have to disappear when someone has been unfair to you. Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku has offered a timely reminder of this seemingly fading virtue in responding to the World Cup controversy surrounding his decision to leave Belgium’s camp for the birth of his first child.

He could have been angry. He could have reminded L'Equipe channel presenter France Pierron of the backlash she faced after calling his decision “disgraceful” and describing a father as “completely useless” during childbirth. He could have pointed to her apology and the reported suspension that followed.

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“I don’t want people to be too harsh on her,” Doku said on his YouTube channel. “We don’t know what she has experienced. It’s her opinion… I’m not against her.”

Doku even acknowledged that people might have wondered whether the timing of events had been “orchestrated because it was too perfect”. 

That is an extraordinary degree of generosity towards someone who had publicly questioned one of the most personal decisions of his life.

During the World Cup, he eventually left Belgium’s camp to be with his wife, Shireen, for the birth of their son, Praise, missing the Red Devils’ 0-0 Group G draw with Iran. He then returned to North America and helped Belgium reach the quarterfinals.

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The encounter Jeremy Doku cannot miss

Doku could easily have taken the moral high ground by attacking the person who attacked him. And when given the opportunity to settle an old score, he chose kindness instead.

And perhaps that was the most powerful rebuttal of all.