Romelu Lukaku suffers racist abuse after Champions League final

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 10 Jun 2023 23:26 BST
• 3 min read

Romelu Lukaku has once again been the victim of racist abuse, this time following Inter’s 1-0 loss against Manchester City in the Champions League final.

Lukaku was left on the bench from the beginning of the game but came on after 57 minutes for the team that finished third in Serie A and suffered a string of mishaps as the Italian side suffered a narrow defeat.

The Belgium international squandered a particularly big chance with just a couple of minutes remaining, Ederson saving his header from point-blank range.

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In response, trolls took to the Instagram page of the Chelsea player to post a succession of racist messages and images.

Lukaku has experienced two difficult seasons since leading Inter to the Serie A title. In the aftermath of this success, he was bought by Chelsea for €115 million but suffered through injury and was loaned back to the Nerazzurri last summer.

More physical problems have plagued the former Manchester United striker this term and he has failed to rediscover his best level at San Siro.

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Lukaku abused again

This is not the first time that Lukaku has found himself the victim of high-profile racist abuse.

On 4 April, Juventus fans racially abused him after he scored a penalty in the Coppa Italia semi-final first leg. He was sent off in the aftermath, and while the appeal was initially rejected, the suspension was ultimately overturned after an outcry.

Meanwhile, racism continues to blight football, with Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid suffering from such attacks on a depressingly frequent basis. The latest of these came in a LaLiga encounter against Valencia, the scale of which took the footballing world by surprise. He too was sent off for his actions only to be later pardoned, yet the Spanish FA have received criticism for the lack of action they have taken against the perpetrators.