Police launched an investigation after Bristol City striker Famara Diedhiou was targeted with racism online after missing a penalty in the second-tier Championship on Saturday. The Senegal international hit the post from the spot in a 1-0 loss at Swansea that ended his team’s chances of reaching the playoffs to make the Premier League. Diedhiou later tweeted“Why??” alongside a screenshot of a Twitter user who sent him a message consisting of three banana emojis.
The police force covering Bristol in southwest England said it had asked Twitter to remove the post and further information on the offender.
“Early indications suggest the message may have originated from an account holder outside of this country,” Avon and Somerset Police said in a statement.
Police will talk to Diedhiou, who is the latest Black footballer in England to receive racist abuse online following high-profile incidents this month involving Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha and Sheffield United’s David McGoldrick.
“Racist messages of any kind are abhorrent,” police said, “and we want to reassure the player and the club that a full and thorough investigation will now take place.”