Barcelona and Spain forward Lamine Yamal has spoken about racism in football, saying he will not allow discriminatory abuse to affect his performances on the pitch.
The young winger was reflecting on instances where he has been subjected to racial abuse and stressed that the meaning behind the words is what matters when it comes to how they are used.
“I don’t care if people call me black. I’m black, I’m no other colour. What matters is the intention,” Yamal said.
The 19-year-old pointed to videos from the Santiago Bernabéu in which he and Barcelona teammate Raphinha were allegedly subjected to racial abuse during a match against Real Madrid.
Yamal said such incidents are particularly noticeable when racial terms are deliberately used as insults.
“Yes, you can see when they call you black to offend you,” he added.
Despite the abuse, Yamal insisted that he would not allow the actions of supporters to change his approach to football.
He said fans who engage in such behaviour are still paying to watch him perform, making it even more important for him to remain focused on his football rather than allow the abuse to affect him.
“In the end, they’re the ones paying the ticket to see me play,” Yamal said.
The Barcelona star also made it clear that he has no intention of changing his attitude or stepping away from the game because of the behaviour of some supporters.
“I’m not going to stop playing because they’re showing lack of respect. I’m not doing that,” he said.
