Juventus’ Moise Kean says his goal celebration was best response to abuse

Kean, who had been jeered throughout the game, turned in Rodrigo Bentancur’s cross with five minutes left to complete a 2-0 win for runaway Serie A leaders Juve and then stood in front of the Cagliari fans behind the goal and opened his arms.

In response, Cagliari’s supporters made the noise which is described in Italy as “buu” and is regarded as a racist insult, although some fans argue it is simply to annoy opposing players regardless of race.

Kean later posted a picture of the celebration with the message: “The best way to respond to racism” while his team mate, France midfielder Blaise Matuidi, posted the same picture with the message: “Black and White. #notoracism.”

There was no official comment on Wednesday from either club.
Serie A’s disciplinary committee is likely to deal with the incidents on Friday, once the entire match day has been completed.

Immediately after the game, Juventus defender Leonardo Bonucci said that Kean was partly to blame for the incidents, for not celebrating with his team mates.

Cagliari president Tommaso Giulini denied the crowd had been racist, saying he heard “mostly boos” and that the Cagliari fans would have reacted the same way if “any other player” had performed a similar celebration.

Under the heading “Italian epidemic”, FARE published a statement on Twitter which read: “Our message to Italian football on the alarming rise in racist incidents is simple. Enough is enough.”

Former Barcelona and Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure said it was unbelievable that such incidents could happen in 2019.

“The team mate… saying to the player you should not have done that. It’s a disgrace. People need to take this seriously. I was shocked when I saw it,” the Ivorian told the Equal Game conference in London.

England forward Raheem Sterling, targeted during a 5-1 Euro 2020 qualifying win in Montenegro last week, posted Bonucci’s comment on Instagram and said: “All you can do now is laugh.”

In December, Inter Milan were ordered to play two home games behind closed doors after Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly was racially insulted during a game at San Siro.

In 2017, Ghanaian player Sulley Muntari was booked and sent off after complaining about racist abuse while playing for Pescara, also at Cagliari.

Matuidi also complained that he suffered racist abuse in another game at Cagliari last season. The Sardinian club later apologised.

Rivals players stand up for Moise Kean after racist abuse

Blamed by his own teammate for the racist abuse aimed at him during an Italian soccer match, Juventus forward Moise Kean received plenty of support from rival players on Wednesday.

Kean is a 19-year-old Italian whose parents are from Ivory Coast. He plays for Italy’s national team and Juventus, the most popular soccer club in the country. He is also black.

When Kean scored a goal against Cagliari on Tuesday, he was subjected to a torrent of racist abuse from the other team’s fans. One of his teammates, Leonardo Bonucci, later said Kean was as much to blame as the fans hurling the abuse. Bonucci is white.

Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling, who is also black and has been outspoken in calling out racism, came to Kean’s defense on Wednesday.

“The blame is 50-50, Leonardo Bonucci … All you can do now is laugh,” Sterling wrote on an Instagram story along with a slew of laughing face and applause emojis.

He later posted a screenshot of the message on Twitter.

Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba, a Frenchman who is black and used to play for Juventus, posted a picture on Instagram of Kean’s celebration and called for Italians to combat racism.

“I support every fight against racism, we’re all equal,” Pogba wrote in English, followed by more in Italian. “Good Italians wake up, you can’t let a small group of racists talk for you.”

On Tuesday in Cagliari, Kean was insulted throughout much of the Italian league match by the home fans. He received a yellow card for faking an injury in the first half.

But he then scored his team’s second goal late in the 2-0 victory. After the ball went in the net, he stood in front of the home fans with his arms outstretched. That sparked even more furious and openly racist abuse.

Cagliari captain Luca Ceppitelli tried to protect Kean, rushing to his side and pleading with the fans to stop. Instead, Ceppitelli appeared to almost be hit on the head by a bottle thrown from the stands.

In the aftermath, Bonucci put half of the blame on Kean.

“There were racist boos after Kean’s celebration and (Blaise) Matuidi got angry but I think the blame is 50-50,” said Bonucci, who is also teammates with the teenager on Italy’s national team. “Kean made a mistake and the fans made a mistake.”

Matuidi, who is also black and won the World Cup with France last year, was subjected to racist abuse at Cagliari last year.

The incident involving Kean is just the latest example of racist abuse in soccer this season. Last week, several England players were targeted with monkey chants during the team’s 5-1 victory in Montenegro.

Former Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure, a four-time African player of the year from Ivory Coast, said players should walk off the field if they are being racially abused.

“Yeah, let’s do this,” Toure said at a UEFA conference on diversity in soccer. “When something like that happens we have to send a strong message.”

On Wednesday, as criticism mounted, Bonucci posted a photo on an Instagram story of him and Kean embracing with a conciliatory message.

“Regardless of everything, in any case… NO TO RACISM,” Bonucci wrote.

Another teammate from both Juventus and Italy’s national team, Giorgio Chiellini, defended Kean in a story posted on the club’s website, calling him “a positive figure of Italian football.”

“The only thing he did wrong today was the simulation (faking injury), that he surely won’t repeat, but he’s here to learn,” Chiellini said. “He’s a very positive figure and he certainly didn’t deserve the insults he received.”

Kean, who scored in both of Italy’s qualifying matches for the 2020 European Championship, also got backing from Mario Balotelli _ another black Italian born to African parents and who played for the country’s national team.

“And tell Bonucci that his luck is that I wasn’t there,” Balotelli wrote in a comment on Instagram. “Instead of defending you he does this? I’m shocked I swear. I love you brother!”

Kean hasn’t spoken publicly about the incident, but he did post a photo of his goal celebration on Instagram with a message.

“The best way to respond to racism,” Kean wrote, “(hash)notoracism.”