An Everton fan has been arrested on suspicion of racially abusing Manchester City forward Antoine Semenyo in the two sides’ clash on Monday night.
City, meanwhile, confirmed on Monday afternoon that defender Marc Guehi was also subject to racist abuse on social media following the game at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Everton said in a statement that a 71-year-old man was arrested ‘on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence after supporters and stewards reported the incident’ with Semenyo inside the ground.
The man has since been bailed, but cannot go within one mile of any sports stadium for a period of up to four hours before kick-off until four hours after full-time.
The statement continued: ‘Racism and discrimination in all forms are completely unacceptable. They have no place in our stadia, our sport or in society, and behaviour of this nature will not be tolerated.
‘A swift response from fellow supporters, stewards and Merseyside Police led to the individual being identified and appropriate action taken.
An Everton fan has been arrested over allegations he racially abused Antoine Semenyo (pictured) on Monday night
Manchester City also revealed that defender Mac Guehi (pictured) was targeted online in a separate incident
‘The club will continue to work closely with the authorities to support their investigation and will take the strongest possible action in line with its zero-tolerance approach.
‘Anyone who witnesses any form of discrimination, harassment or anti-social behaviour is encouraged to report it. This can be done by speaking to a steward or police officer, or by using confidential reporting channels. Incidents can be reported to the Stadium Safety Team by texting HELP along with details of the incident and location to 84300, or by emailing reportit@evertonfc.com.’
City, meanwhile, said: ‘We welcome the swift action taken by Everton and the police to identify the individual responsible.’
They added: ‘We will continue to offer our full support to both Antoine and Marc and never accept discrimination of any kind in our game.’
The incident comes in a season in which Semenyo has been keen to highlight racist abuse that has been sent his way. As recently as nine days ago, he reposted discriminative messages he has received from an account on Instagram with the caption: ‘It’s started again.’
On the opening day of the season, meanwhile, while he was playing for Bournemouth against Liverpool, he reported alleged racist abuse from a fan.
Mark Mogan, 47, was arrested and charged by Merseyside Police with a racially aggravated section 5 public order offence. He denied the offence in court in December, and it was said at the time that the trial was set to take place in April.
A number of other Premier League players have suffered racist abuse this season, including Sunderland’s Lutsharel Geertruida and Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana.
