Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo has called for racist abusers to he handed more severe punishment for their actions in his first interview since he was the victim of a vile onslaught at Anfield last week.
The Cherries talesman, 25, had been taking a throw-in during his side’s clash with Liverpool on the opening day of the Premier League season when a fan in a wheelchair bombarded him with vile abuse.
While Semenyo reported the incident to referee Anthony Taylor, Merseyside Police escorted the man – later revealed by the Daily Mail to be 47-year-old Mark Mogan – out of the stadium before arresting him on Saturday.
Mogan, a scouser who has been on a wheelchair his entire life, has since been bailed for three months pending further investigations.
More than a week later, Semenyo, who scored a brace on the night, has now spoken out publicly about the ‘mind-boggling’ abuse he suffered, which he says is all too common-place in the world of football.
‘It was pretty sad to hear to be honest, I feel like in this day and age us players are still getting racially abused and it just doesn’t make sense,’ he told ITV News, ‘we just want to know why it keeps happening.
Antoine Semenyo has given his first interview since he was allegedly racially abused at Anfield
The incident occurred in the 28th minute when the Bournemouth winger was taking a throw-in
Semenyo has called for racist abusers to be handed ‘great punishment’ for their actions
‘I feel like it was the right thing to do [to report the incident to the referee], I wasn’t going to hide away. I feel like the referee had to know what was going on and if I didn’t say anything it would have played on my mind.
‘I got in at half-time and I was pretty angry to be honest, I got to the realisation of what happened but I just used it as fuel and motivation and those two goals, you could say it came from that.
‘It’s mind-boggling to be honest, the punishment isn’t enough when things like this happen. There has to be great punishment and any players who might have experienced it, don’t shy away from reporting and make sure that the punishment is maximum, it shouldn’t be happening in this day and age.’
When asked what that punishment should be, the footballer replied: ‘Could be jail time, it could be banned from stadiums for life, it could be anything along the lines of that but I feel like there has to be something else done.’
Semenyo has received an outpouring of support since the shocking incident both on and off the pitch. After he reported the abuse to the referee during the fixture, players from both teams comforted him.
But when checking his phone on the team bus after the game, the Ghanian international noticed racist comments and messages sent to him on social media.
Responding on the night in an Instagram Story, he asked: ‘When will it stop…’
If he’s found guilty, Liverpool have vowed to ban the perpetrator for life.
The footballer responded to racist abuse on his Instagram after the fixture
Despite the abuse, the Ghanaian international went on to score a brace at Anfield
The club said in a statement: ”We are aware of an allegation of racist abuse made during our Premier League game against AFC Bournemouth.
‘We condemn racism and discrimination in all forms, it has no place in society or football.’
The latest statement from Merseyside Police reads: ‘We can confirm that a man has been conditionally bailed after he was arrested following reports that racist abuse was directed towards Bournemouth player Antoine Semenyo.
‘A 47-year-old man from Liverpool was arrested on Saturday August 16 on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence. He has now been bailed with conditions, which includes not to attend any regulated football match in the UK and not to go within one mile of a designated football stadium.
‘An investigation into the incident, which occurred during a Premier League match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield on Friday August 15, remains ongoing and we continue to work closely with the club.’
