Racism at PSG-Istanbul match sees players walk off pitch

Racism at PSG-Istanbul Basaksehir match sees players walk off pitch

PSG and Istanbul Basaksehir players walked off the pitch on Tuesday to protest a racist remark was made by a official towards a member of the Turkish team's staff.

MENA

2 min read

�� Staff

09 December, 2020

The referee was accused of racism by the Turkish team's staff member [Getty]

A game between Paris Saint-Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir ended prematurely on Tuesday after a comment was made by a match official to a member of the Turkish club's coaching staff.

Players from both teams walked off the pitch after Romanian fourth official Sebastian Coltescu referred to Basaksehir assistant Pierre Webo as "the one" in Romanian, which was picked up by nearby mics.

"The Black one over there. Go and check who he is. The Black one over there, it's not possible to act like that," Coltescu said, after Webo reacted to a refereeing decision.

The comment prompted a heated incident at the Champions League game with a clearly upset Webo shouting "why did you say negro?" at the match official.

Basaksehir's Demba Ba also stepped in to defend the staff member in a video that has since gone viral online.

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"You never this say 'this white guy', you say 'this guy', so why when you mention… listen to me… so why when you mention a black guy [do] you have to say 'this Black guy'?" Demba Ba is heard clearly saying to Coltescu.

But the incident also angered PSG players with defender Presnel Kimpembe saying: "Is he serious? We are heading in. We're heading in. That's it, we're heading in."

The game has been suspended until Wednesday. UEFA are investigating the incident.

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