Ex-Super Eagles captain and Trabzonspor midfielder, John Obi Mikel, was allegedly the target of racist abuse from Fenerbahce supporters after their Turkish Super Lig clash on Saturday.
It was reported that thousands of abusive and harmful messages were sent to Obi Mikel’s social media accounts, as well as to his family, as his side defeated their arch-rival 2-1.
Turkish media detailed how abusive messages were sent to the player’s Instagram page. ‘including use of the N-word and banana emojis’.
His club, Trabzonspor have confirmed an official criminal complaint over racist abuse allegedly suffered by the former Chelsea midfielder.
In a statement released, Trabzonspor wrote: ‘Racism is a shelter for helpless and ignorant.
‘We condemn the racist attacks against our player Obi Mikel after the match against Fenerbahce and we bring to the public attention that a criminal complaint has been filed against the assailants. #WeStandwithObi #SayNoToRacism’
Reacting on Instagram, Mikel wrote: ‘We are all one and equal. It’s just a game at the end of the day.#saynotoracism.’
During the match on Saturday, Mikel was reported to have been involved in a furious argument with Fenerbahce midfielder Emre Belozoglu at the final whistle, they ‘had to be separated by team-mates.’
Turkish citizens, as well as Trabzonspor supporters, have been tweeting their support for Mikel with “#WeStandWithObi”
Back in 2013, former Premier League stars Didier Drogba and Emmanuel Eboue were subjected to monkey chants from Fenerbahce supporters while playing for Galatasaray.
