“We will report them to the police”

Tolu was a victim of insults and racist slurs, but Genk have pulled their weights behind him

Belgium Jupiler League club Genk have backed Nigerian striker Tolu Arokodare following the online bullying and racist slurs he suffered following their loss to Club Brugge at Cegeka Arena on Sunday, Soccernet.ng reports.

Genk welcomed their close rivals, Club Brugge, to Cegeka Arena in their Jupiler League clash on Sunday. The game has historically proven to be a crunch fixture, and tempers were high going into the fixture.

Nigerian striker Arokodare had an early chance to put Genk ahead from the penalty spot. However, he missed his penalty kick.

Eventually, the Limburgers were punished, as Club Brugge scored three goals to emerge victorious after 90 minutes. Following their loss, a section of Genk fans were unhappy, and they took their anger to social media and sent threats and racist slurs to Arokodare.

Following the incident, Genk have issued a statement, pulling weight behind Arokodare, promising to take action against the perpetrators.

“After the match against Club Brugge, Tolu received a series of racist reactions on social media,” Genk wrote.

“KRC Genk and everyone involved with the club condemn the reactions 100%. Racism has no place. Not in football stadiums, not on social media, nowhere.

“Unfortunately, racism is still deeply rooted in football and, by extension, in society as a whole. It is a shared responsibility to put a stop to this. As a club, we do everything we can to track down those responsible and report them to the police.”

This season, Arokodare has registered eight goals and two assists in 28 league games. Despite this setback, he will look to return to the scoresheet in Genk’s next game against Standard Liege.