Ivan Tony celebrates scoring for Bretford at Arsenal
Brentford has condemned racist abuse aimed at striker Ivan Toney following their 1-1 draw at Arsenal on Saturday.
Toney scored the equaliser that sealed a point for Brentford against the Premier League leaders, though replays appeared to show that the goal ought to have been ruled out for Christian Norgaard straying offside in the build-up.
In a statement released by Brentford on Sunday, the club claimed that Toney was once subjected to racist abuse on Instagram, and pleaded with all football followers to “celebrate diversity”.
“Immediately after Brentford’s game against Arsenal, Ivan Toney received a barrage of abusive, racist direct messages via his Instagram account,” the statement read.
“We are disgusted and saddened that Ivan has had to deal with this but again.
“We will now not tolerate it and we will do the whole lot we can to pursue the folks involved.
“Ivan was once in a situation with similar abuse in October closing year, and the perpetrator is now going through the penalties in court.
“How many instances does this want to happen?
“We call on football fans everywhere to relish the competition and rivalry that exists between us, but to respect and embody our differences and celebrate the variety that exists throughout the Premier League.
“There is no room for racism.”
This weekend’s Premier League games saw a return to the taking of the knee prior to kick-off as a section of the No Room for Racism campaign.
Last year, Toney stated that individuals in his household had been racially abused in the stands at Goodison Park, at some point during a 3-2 win for Brentford over Everton.
