Zlatan slams racism

LONDON. — Zlatan Ibrahimovic has said “there is no place for racism” in football after coming under scrutiny for language he used in a fiery exchange with Romelu Lukaku during Tuesday night’s Milan derby. AC Milan’s Ibrahimovic and Inter’s Lukaku, once team-mates at Manchester United, were both booked after clashing heads and trading insults in a spat at the end of the first half of the Coppa Italia quarter-final tie. The pair’s heated conversation was picked up by the television cameras with no fans in the stadium and Ibrahimovic has subsequently faced criticism on social media for his choice of words.

Ibrahimovic responded on social media on Wednesday, saying: “In Zlatan’s world there is no place for racism. We are all the same race — we are all equal.” The former Sweden international had one more quip for Lukaku, adding: “We are all players some better than others.”

Sky in Italy is reporting that the Italian FA will not make a decision on how to proceed until at least today. Ibrahimovic, who gave Milan the lead, was sent off after picking up a second yellow in the second half, while Lukaku levelled with a penalty before Christian Eriksen’s stoppage-time winner sent Inter through with a 2-1 win. — Sky Sports.