Burnley stars refuse to shake hands with opponent after alleged racist abuse

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn
Burnley stars refuse to shake hands with opponent after alleged racist abuse

Burnley players refused to shake Milutin Osmajic's hand before kick-off in their FA Cup fifth-round tie - before the Preston North End player made it 2-0 at Deepdale.

The forward denies the allegation with Hannibal describing his remarks as "disgusting", while the Football Association have opened an investigation.

And the former Manchester United midfielder's team-mates showed their solidarity by collectively pulling their hands away from Osmajic as both teams went through their pre-match formalities ahead of their Cup tie.

But Osmajic found the net a minute before half-time before taunting Clarets fans by cupping his ears with his hands when celebrating and shouting something in front of the travelling end.

His goal doubled Preston's advantage after Ireland international Robbie Brady had given them an early lead. Will Keane went on to make it 3-0 in the second half as North End sealed their progress.

Footage from last month's clash showed Osmajic speaking to Hannibal in the 56th minute of the game, with the midfielder immediately rushing over to referee Andrew Kitchen and asking for the match to be halted.

Following the game, Mejbri posted on social media to explain the incident. He said: "I will not be silent about what happened today. "I will always call out racism whenever I hear or see it. That is the only way we change as a sport and a society. I am a strong person but nobody should have to experience this disgusting abuse on the pitch."

A Preston club statement after the match read: "Preston North End are aware of a complaint that has been made by Hannibal Mejbri and Burnley FC to today's match officials with regards to an allegation of a comment made by Milutin Osmajic during today's Sky Bet Championship fixture at Deepdale.

"Milutin Osmajic has strongly refuted the claims of a comment made towards Hannibal Mejbri in a post-match meeting with today's match officials.

"The club would like to thank the match officials for the way they have handled the issue and will assist with the investigation until a conclusion has been found. No further comment will be made at this time."

Burnley later released a statement and said: "Burnley Football Club is aware of an alleged comment made to Hannibal by Milutin Osmajic during our game against Preston North End which was reported to officials both during and after the game.

"During the second-half Hannibal made referee Andrew Kitchen aware of the comment who has registered the complaint. The Club would like to thank the officials for their professional handling of the incident.

"The Club will continue to show its complete support to Hannibal and there will be no further comment made until the investigation has been completed."

Mejbri joined Burnley from United last summer for around £5.4million, signing a four-year contract at Turf Moor. He has played 25 times for Burnley since joining, playing a major role in their season as Parker aims for an immediate return to the Premier League.

admin

admin

Content creator at LTD News. Passionate about delivering high-quality news and stories.

Comments

Leave a Comment

Be the first to comment on this article!
Loading...

Loading next article...

You've read all our articles!

Error loading more articles

loader