Serie A game halted after claims of racial abuse
Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o suffered racist abuse on Sunday when Cagliari fans targeted the Inter Milan player in their Serie A game.
Referee Paolo Tagliavento stopped the game after just three minutes and called the two team captains to the centre circle over the chants.
He also asked the stadium announcer to remind fans that the game could be abandoned if the chants aren’t stopped.
The pause lasted just three minutes before the game got underway again.
Eto’o had the last laugh, though, as he scored the only goal of the game to send Inter joint top of Serie A.
Inter coach Rafael Benitez praised the Cagliari fans for quickly changing their behaviour.
“The positive thing is that the public understood straight away and then thought only about football,” Benitez said.
However, Cagliari coach Pierpaolo Bisoli suggested it was a misunderstanding over the nature of the ‘boos’.
“Honestly I wasn’t aware of anything, I’ve been asked a lot about it but what happened?” he asked.
“I wouldn’t want normal jeers which are generally aimed at opponents to be confused with racist insults.
“I know the Sardinian fans and how civilised they are, I’ve never heard this sort of thing from Cagliari fans.”
Cagliari’s Brazilian midfielder Nene also cast doubt over the nature of the chants.
“On the pitch we didn’t understand what was going on, I wasn’t aware of anything,” he said.
From BBC Sport
