Former Ghana international Sulley Muntari has expressed hope that racism in football will one day come to an end.
The ex-midfielder, who experienced racial abuse during his time in the Italian Serie A with Pescara, recalled a particularly distressing incident in a match against Cagliari.
After reporting the abuse to the referee, Muntari was instead shown a yellow card, prompting him to walk off the pitch in frustration.
Reflecting on his experience in an interview with Flashscore, the 40-year-old stated, “They can’t deal with racism in Italy. It’s going to be like this for a long time unless they act in a very strict way. In England, you can be suspended or jailed for racism but even with that it is still there. It’s human nature, it is things that they feel about us.”
Offering advice to current players, Muntari added, “As a player, I think you don’t have to pay attention to it. If you’re playing football, you go on to do just that. If you’re working you go on to do just that. Wherever you are, just focus on what you do and don’t let someone get to you. Sometimes they bring their frustration to you.
“If I knew at that time, I would have handled things differently. I was young so I would fight back. That being said, I’m hoping one-day racism will stop,” he added.
Muntari’s appearance in that match extended his record for the most Serie A games played by an African footballer, reaching 270 matches. However, fellow Ghanaian Kwadwo Asamoah later surpassed this milestone in 2021.
Muntari played at the 2006, 2010 and 2014 World Cups in Germany, South Africa and Brazil respectively.