Romelu Lukaku was a victim of racist chants at Turin during the first leg of the semifinals in the Italian Cup (Coppa Italia) against Juventus. After the Belgian striker scored the 1-1 in minute 95′, he celebrated with a military salute remembering his friend with the National Team, Jeremy Doku.
The referee interpreted the gesture as a provocation and showed him a yellow card, the second one for Lukaku during the game, so he was out of the match. After that, many fans from Juventus shouted racist chants tothe forward. “History repeats itself. I’ve passed through this in 2019 and now in 2023 again. I hope Serie A takes actions against this, because soccer should be enjoyed by all” said Lukaku on Instagram.
Furthermore, Romelu Lukaku thanked the extraordinary amount of support he has received after the game against Juventus. Now, superstars like Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr, also had special messages for the Belgian player.
Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr send support to Romelu Lukaku
The incidents of racism against Romelu Lukaku at Turin were condemned worldwide. “A few characters in the stands cannot ruin the soccer spectacle and don’t represent the thought of all the fans at the stadium, who fortunately share the highest values in sport. Serie A, as it has always done it, will be able to identify the people responsible for this, excluding them with lifetime bans” was the message from the Italian League authorities.
Kylian Mbappe posted a very strong message about Romelu Lukaku’s situation on his official Instagram account. “2023 and still the same problems. But we’re not going to let you do it. All against racism.”
Vinicius Jr, the player who has received the most racist attacks in different cities and stadiums of Spain, immediately reacted showing his support to Romelu Lukaku on social media. “We are together, brother.” The message was accompanied by Lukaku’s celebration of the goal against Juventus.