Juventus and Italy captain, Giorgio Chiellini has condemed racist abuse from Fiorentina fans aimed at Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly, Andre-Frank Anguissa and Super Eagles star Victor Osimhen on Sunday October 3.
‘It’s unacceptable,’ said Chiellini. ‘I was ashamed as an Italian, as a Tuscan. It is shameful because in Europe people talk about Italy as a racist country and I don’t think it necessarily is.
‘Everyone needs to do more. It is terrible publicity for Italy abroad. We all need to make an effort but we need laws which are applied and enforced. That’s the most important thing.’
Kalidou Koulibaly, Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Victor Osimhen surrefed vile chants from Fiorentina fans during their 2-1 win.
Duing post-match interview, Koulibaly told Il Napolista that he stopped at the tunnel and challenged the culprits after hearing a slur aimed at him.
Condemning the incident, Fiorentina said in a statement, “Fiorentina expresses the most firm and harsh condemnation for the episodes of racism that took place yesterday during the match against Napoli.
“General Manager (Joe) Barone, already after the match, personally apologised. La Viola (Fiorentina) has already made available to the police all the video images and all the tools in its possession so that the culprits of these unspeakable chants are identified.
“Once the responsible institutions have identified the culprits, it will be the care of Fiorentina itself to prohibit them from accessing the stadium, hoping the same commitment from all the clubs, as well as the application of the rules that must always be the same for everyone.”
Florence’s mayor also released a statement on Monday.
“On behalf of Florence, I apologise,” Dario Nardella said on Twitter. “Whoever yesterday offended the players of the Napoli at the stadium does not represent the city and does not represent Fiorentina.”
