Incident occured during warm-up for Juve's 1-1 draw with AC Milan in Serie A on Sunday; Milan's France international goalkeeper Maignan later posted to social media, saying "as long as we will be able to raise our voice and make a difference, we will do it"
Friday 24 September 2021 08:22, UK
A Juventus fan alleged to have shouted racist insults at AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan last weekend has been identified and reported to police.
Security cameras around the Allianz Stadium picked up footage of the supporter, a member of a Juventus fan club based in Castagnaro, which has already confirmed the person has been expelled.
The incident occurred during the warm-up for Sunday's Serie A clash in Turin, which ended in a 1-1 draw and led goalkeeper Maignan to post a lengthy statement on social media asking why so little was being done to combat racism inside football stadiums.
A statement from the fan group read: "We learned that one of our members, in the Juventus-Milan pre-match, was responsible for unacceptable and shameful behaviours (which do not even deserve mention), which had great media coverage.
"The Juventus Club Castagnaro firmly dissociates itself from such behaviours and harshly condemns them, no ifs and buts.
"We cannot accept that attitudes of this kind are combined with the name of our club, which do not represent us in any way, on the contrary they offend our history and the name of Gaetano Scirea, whom we have chosen precisely for the values it represents.
"We therefore communicate that the person in question is expelled from the club with immediate effect.
"Even if what happened is the total and exclusive responsibility of its author, we sadly apologise to everyone for what happened."
AC Milan CEO Ivan Gazidis also issued a statement supporting not only Maignan, but other recent victims of racist abuse, both inside stadiums and online including Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling.
Gazidis said: "We acknowledge that we cannot hope to solve a problem such as racism in our society, or even the world of football, alone. However, we must all continue to spread messages of hope and optimism and understand that every small action, every individual's attitude and every repetition of these messages, can help to contribute to positive change.
"We have consistently reiterated our commitment as a club to drive change and this video, the latest articulation of our broader RespAct Manifesto, aims to reinforce a set of values that we believe are fundamental in addressing inequality and discrimination: the strength of a team, the feeling of family, together with our fans, the idea that solidarity and unity are the only ways to counteract the hate and negativity of the minority."
"We dedicate this message to Tiémoué, Franck, Mike, Misa, Agata, Marcus, Bukayo, Raheem, Nadia and all victims of abuse and intolerance who deserve nothing but our esteem and respect. We stand with you and we will not stop."
