Senegalese goalkeeper Cheikh Sarr heard racist abuse against him from the stands on other occasions, but when a fan approached him just to racially insult him during a Spanish third division game last Saturday (30), he decided he was done with it.
“I grabbed him and asked him why he was insulting me. My attitude was not aggressive. I just wanted to ask why,” the 23-year-old told reporters on Tuesday about the incident in Sestao, a working-class city in northern Spain, that led to the game being abandoned.
“Other occasions can be seen as a prank or a joke. However, that wasn’t the case on Saturday because it was something horrible and I couldn’t handle it. It was a really sad, ugly thing they were saying,” she added.
The game between Sarr’s Rayo Majadahonda and Sestao River Club was suspended 39 minutes into the second half. The argument saw Sarr sent off by the referee, who was too far away to hear the insults, and then his teammates left the pitch in protest.
Racism in sport has been a hot topic in Spain, particularly after Brazilian striker Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid, who has suffered several incidents of prejudiced abuse and is part of a campaign against racism, called the Spanish league and Spain racist. last year.
Last Saturday, the Brazilian national team player expressed support for those affected by racism, citing “three despicable cases of racism” that day alone, including that of Sarr. Sevilla’s Argentine full-back Marcos Acuña and members of the team’s coaching staff were also targets of “racist and xenophobic insults” from fans in a La Liga game against Getafe away from home, the club said.
* Reproduction of this content is prohibited.
Tags: Senegalese goalkeeper leaves game Spain racist insults
