Jonathan Zebina reacts to a group of unhappy tifosi racially taunting him
The Juve tifosi are an unhappy lot who have vented their anger on a frustrating season on a whole host of people like Jean Claude Blanc, Juve's owner and director of football operations Alessio Sacco.
On the pitch, the players made easier targets. Especially the ones with darker skin. Jonathan Zebina and Felipe Melo were subjected to racist taunts by a handful of Juve supporters throughout the match. When Zebina exited the pitch after receiving his red card he showed them the finger.
Afterwards, he apologized for the gesture but he also said that it was to show his displeasure at thirty thugs and racists who he accused of traveling to England "just to chant these things."
"I'm tired of this situation and the fans need to stop."
The incident continues a disturbing trend at Juventus. In April 2009, Juve had to play a closed door match to Lecce after being sanctioned for fans hurling racial abuse at Mario Balotelli. They were further fined €20,000 on two separate occasions for singing:
"If you jump up and down Balotelli will die."
In a match against Catania last December, Juve fans once again targeted Balotelli singing, "There are no black Italians."
After the April sanction, Juve president Giovanni Cobolli Gigli said:
"Together we must all try to promote a sporting culture that puts respect for the adversary at its core and fights against racism."
We have to remind him again. Start with your club.
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