Italian Soccer Player Criticized for Celebrating Goal After Receiving Racist Jeers

Italian soccer club Juventus F.C. have an absolute winner on their hands with 19-year-old prodigy Moise Kean.

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Image via Getty/Nicolò Campo

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Italian soccer club Juventus F.C. have an absolute winner on their hands with 19-year-old prodigy Moise Kean, but he's received some blame from his team for the racist jeers he received during a recent match against Cagliari. Before scoring the second goal of the game, Cagliari fans were reportedly yelling monkey noises at Kean. Faced with such abhorent behavior from the opposing team's fans, he decided to celebrate his goal by gloating in front of the fans. 

Upon scoring the goal, which can be seen below, he stared down the Cagliari side of the audience. 

 

He later posted a photo of his stance upon scoring the goal to his Instagram, captioning the post, "The best way to respond to racism."

Despite this, Kean hasn't received full support from his team. Juventus captain Leonardo Bonucci said that Kean didn't handle the celebration in the correct way, explaining to Sky Sports Italia, "When he scores a goal, he has to focus on celebrating with his team-mates. I think the blame is 50-50, because Moise shouldn't have done that, and the Curva [fans] should not have reacted that way."

Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri was also critical of how he celebrated, while also stating that the racism in the stands wasn't acceptable. "He shouldn't have celebrated in that manner," Allegri added. "He is a young man and he has to learn, but certain things from the crowd also shouldn't be heard."

Manchester City and England player Raheem Sterling offerred Kean his support, however, posting on his Instagram and Twitter with a message disapproving of Bonucci's comments.

Despite what his team manager and captain say, it's clear that Kean has a lot of support.

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