Udinese's Keinan Davis alleges racist slur by Cagliari's Alberto Dossena
CAGLIARI, Italy (AP) — Udinese forward Keinan Davis has accused Cagliari defender Alberto Dossena of calling him a “monkey” during Saturday’s Serie A match. Dossena denied any wrongdoing. Towards the end of Udinese’s 2-0 victory at Cagliari, Davis — who is Black — reacted angrily and alerted the referee to something said from the stands.
Tension then rose after the final whistle when Davis and Dossena had to be separated by teammates. Davis posted a story on Instagram after the match, tagging Dossena and using a picture of the player with the comment: “This racist coward called me a monkey today during the game. I hope the Serie A association will do something about this but we will see.
” Dossena posted a statement on his own Instagram account about an hour later. “Being accused of racism saddens and hurts me,” Dossena wrote. “It is a very serious accusation, it would never cross my mind to address another person, a colleague with an insult of that kind.
“It is the first time that such a situation has happened to me in which I have to defend myself from a defamatory accusation. Such behavior is the furthest thing from my culture and education. ” Udinese also put out a statement but did not name Dossena.
“Udinese Calcio expresses utmost solidarity and full support for Keinan Davis who was subjected to shameful racist insults by a player from the opposing team during this afternoon’s match,” the statement said. “The club reiterates its firm condemnation of such deplorable acts which seriously damage the image and values of the sport we love. Udinese will defend Keinan in every way and hopes for a rapid resolution of the incident by the sports justice bodies in which it has full confidence.