Sports

KEAN ABUSE: Sterling says Bonucci racism comments laughable

Published

5 years ago

April 3, 2019

England and Manchester City winger, Raheem Sterling has described as laughable Leonardo Bonucci’s suggestion that his Juventus team-mate Moise Kean was partly to blame for the racist abuse he received from Cagliari fans on Tuesday night.

19-year-old Kean spread his arms while facing the crowd after scoring Juve’s second goal in their Serie A 2-0 win following a racist chant from the crowd.

But Juve defender, Bonucci, in a post-match interview, said Kean “could have done it differently” and “the blame is 50-50.”

“Kean knows that when he scores a goal, he has to focus on celebrating with his teammates. “We are professionals, we have to set the example and not provoke anyone,” he said.

But via an Instagram post, Sterling has described Bonucci’s comment as laughable, as the 24-year old boldly wrote, “All you can do now is laugh.”

Sterling celebrated in a similar manner after scoring in England’s 5-1 win over Montenegro in Podgorica last month, during which racist chanting was directed at several England players.

Sterling, who gestured to the crowd by putting his hands to his ears, later called on football’s authorities to take “a proper stance” against racist abuse.

Meanwhile, Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri said Kean “shouldn’t have celebrated in that manner” before calling on the authorities to act.

After the game, Kean posted the picture of his celebration on Instagram with the caption: “The best way to respond to racism.”

Other players including Paul Pogba, Mario Balotelli, Christian Benteke and few more have also spoken against racism following the incident of last night.

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