[ad_1]
Manchester United striker Edinson Cavani apologized for the social media message he posted following his winning performance in Southampton on Sunday.
The Uruguayan international inspired United’s 3-2 comeback over Southampton with two goals and an assist after coming off the bench at half-time.
In response to a congratulatory message on Instagram, Cavani used the Spanish term ‘negrito’, which translates to ‘black’.
The 33-year-old insists he is “completely against racism” as he removed the post after he realized the connotations.
“The message I posted after Sunday’s game was intended to be a warm greeting to a friend, thanking him for his congratulations after the game,” he said in a statement.
“The last thing I wanted to do was offend anyone. I am completely opposed to racism and deleted the message as soon as it was explained that it can be interpreted otherwise. I would like to sincerely apologize for this.”
United also issued a short statement endorsing Cavani.
“It is clear to us that there was absolutely no malicious intent behind Edinson’s message and he removed it as soon as he was informed that it could be misinterpreted,” it reads.
“Edinson has issued an apology for any unintentional offense caused. Manchester United and all of our players are fully committed to fighting racism.”
The Football Association, which is aware of the matter and will investigate, issued guidelines earlier this season to crack down on racist and discriminatory language and behavior, and crimes on social media carry a minimum three-game ban.
The anti-discrimination group Kick It Out issued a statement on Cavani’s post and again called for foreign players to be educated in language that can cause offense in the UK.
“We are aware of a comment made last night on social networks by Edinson Cavani that, in his mother tongue, may be offensive in some contexts,” it reads.
“We understand that the FA is investigating and the club and the player are cooperating with that investigation. We await the outcome of that investigation.
“As we have said before, we think it would be helpful for foreign players coming to England to have a routine education on a language that may be unacceptable in this country.”
The former Paris St Germain striker moved to Old Trafford in the summer on a free transfer and scored his first Premier League goal in the recent win at Everton.
He was featured at halftime in Southampton with United trailing 2-0, providing an assist for Bruno Fernandes to regain the score before leveling and heading home with the injury time victory.
[ad_2]