Brazil international Thiago Silva has described the banana throw at teammate Richarlison as a “shame”.
“Unfortunately, we can’t change the mentality of the people. I hope that the public will realize that this is unacceptable and belongs to the past. We have to change,” said the defender.
Richarlison had a banana thrown at him after scoring in a friendly against Brazil, five-time world champions Brazil, in Paris (5-1). The 25-year-old was not hit. “Let’s hope they identify and punish the fan. You can see what happened to Vinicius Junior last time and now this, in a stadium,” said the Tottenham Hotspur player and later criticized the associations on Twitter: “As long as they continue to limit the “bla bla bla” and not punish it, it will continue like this. Every day and at every corner.”
Both nations will take part in the World Cup in Qatar at the end of the year. Before the game, the Brazilian players had gathered behind a sign that read: “Without our black players, we wouldn’t have any stars on our jersey.” The five stars on the Seleção jerseys represent the five titles.
Richarlison received support from his club Tottenham Hotspur: “We are disgusted by the racist insults,” wrote the club: “It has nothing to do with football or anywhere else. We stand by you, Richy.”