https://arab.news/yekhj
- Germany players left the pitch after Jordan Torunarigha was racially abused, said German Football Association
- German head coach Stefan Kuntz defended his 23-year-old squad member
TOKYO: Germany walked off after 85 minutes of Saturday’s pre-Olympics friendly with Honduras after Jordan Torunarigha suffered racist abuse.
The 2016 silver medallists played the Central Americans in Wakayama, Japan, as they warmed up for their Games campaign which starts on July 22 against champions Brazil.
“The game has ended 5 minutes early with the score at 1-1. The Germany players left the pitch after Jordan Torunarigha was racially abused,” the German Football Association (DFB) tweeted.
German head coach Stefan Kuntz defended his 23-year-old squad member.
“When one of our players is racially abused, playing on is not an option,” told DFB’s Twitter account.
The Honduras Football Federation said on Twitter the situation was down to a “misunderstanding on the pitch.”
In February 2020, Hertha Berlin center-back Torunarigha was sent off for reacting to alleged monkey chants from Schalke fans during a German Cup loss.
In that match, Torunarigha, who is of Nigerian descent, picked up a water bottle carrier and slammed it to the ground before being shown a red card for second bookable offense.