THOUSANDS of Napoli fans showed their support for racism victim Kalidou
Koulibaly by donning masks of the defender against Carpi today.
Senegal international Koulibaly was the victim of monkey chants during
Napoli’s 2-0 win at Lazio on Wednesday.
The ref halted the match to demand a stop to the abuse and Lazio were later
handed a £38,250 fine.
France-born Koulibaly showed his disdain for the racists by offering his
Napoli shirt to a young Lazio-supporting ball boy.
A supporters’ group, Quelli del Sangue Azzurro — the blue-blooded ones —
encouraged fans to wear the masks for their 1-0 victory over Carpi at Stadio
San Paolo.
In addition, some supporters painted their faces in support of the player.
A statement from the group before the game read: “Everyone in Naples is
offended by what happened to our young star.
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“Because of this, we want to show our full support to Koulibaly.
“Our invitation to Napoli fans is to print a photo of the defender and put it
on your face when the teams come on the pitch.”
Lazio were fined £38,250 and will have to close three sections of the Stadio
Olimpico for their next two Serie A home games.
Napoli’s victory on keeps them two points ahead of defending champions
Juventus, who they play in a crunch tie next week.