Milan's clash at Udinese halted after racist abuse of Maignan

BeSoccer 1 year ago 1.3k
Mike Maignan was racially abused by Udinese fans. AFP

AC Milan's match at Udinese was paused on Saturday after France goalkeeper Mike Maignan was racially abused by home fans.

Play was stopped in the 38th minute by referee Fabio Maresca after persistent monkey chanting at Maignan, which initially led to Milan's players leaving the field in outrage.

Fans had been warned to stop the abuse after Maignan had initially complained to Maresca about the chants, but they carried on and forced the officials to halt the match.

Play resumed after about five minutes, with Milan leading thanks to Ruben Loftus-Cheek's goal in the 31st minute in Udine before Lazar Samardzic levelled the scores three minutes before half-time.

Home supporters continued booing Maignan every time he received the ball, annoyed at his complaints which led to the game being temporarily stopped. "There is absolutely no place in our game for racism: we are appalled. We are with you, Mike," Milan wrote on social media.

This is not the first time that Maignan has been racially abused by supporters in Italy as he was targeted by a Juventus fan in September 2021.

Mentioned in the news story

Luka Jović
L. Samardžić
F. Thauvin
M. Maignan
Noah Okafor
R. Loftus-Cheek