April 12, (THEWILL) – Bayern Munich have spoken out against online racist slurs directed towards defender Dayot Upamecano, following their 3-0 defeat to Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.
Offensive emojis and comments on the player’s skin colour were left by social media users on the France international’s Instagram account. However, Bayern’s official Instagram account addressed the harassment by saying: “All of us at FC Bayern condemn racism in the strongest possible terms.”
Upamecano’s teammates and coaches also came to his defence, with midfielder Joshua Kimmich praising the player’s top qualities and stating, “We believe in him.” Although Upamecano’s mistake “cost us the game today,” Bayern manager, Thomas Tuchel, defended the young centre-back, stating that everyone who plays football at this level will eventually make mistakes.
Online racist slurs have become a disturbing trend in football in recent years, with players, including Kingsley Coman and Marcus Rashford, facing similar abuse.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
