MADRID: Granada and Cadiz drew 0-0 in a LaLiga match marked by a fan racially insulting a player on Monday.

A fan behind one of the goals at Granada’s stadium was seen on the television broadcast making what appeared to be gestures imitating a monkey as Cadiz player Carlos Akapo, who is Black, passed by while returning to the bench after being substituted in the second half.

Akapo stopped for a moment after noticing what happened and said a few words to the fan, who repeated the gesture. Another fan in front of the man who insulted Akapo apparently asked him to stop provoking the player.

“I told him that was not necessary, but he kept doing the same gesture”, Akapo said, “People like that don’t deserve to be in a stadium. They don’t represent the Granada supporters. I don’t understand how someone can insult others like that”.

The 28-year-old player from Ecuadorean Guinea said three or four fans insulted him, with one of them calling him a monkey. Spanish media said Granada and the Spanish league were trying to identify the fan with the help of television images of the incident.

The league was also reportedly trying to identify a Rayo Vallecano fan who tried to spit on Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois as he prepared to take a goal kick in a league match on Saturday.

The draw ended Granada’s five-game losing streak in the league, when they had been outscored 13-3. It stayed just outside the relegation zone in 17th place, four points ahead of Cadiz, whose winless streak reached five matches in all competitions.

Granada played a man down from the 33rd minute after defender Domingos Duarte was sent off for stopping a breakaway with a foul.

Both teams entered the field wearing T-shirts with the message “Stop War”, “Always With The Real People”.

Published in Dawn, March 2nd, 2022