France and Tottenham Hotspur forward Mathys Tel was subjected to racial abuse after he missed a spot kick in the penalty shootout during his side’s UEFA Super Cup loss on Tuesday.
Tottenham, the Europa League winner, lost 3-4 in penalties to Paris Saint-Germain, with the match remaining tied at 2-2 after 90 minutes plus stoppage time.
Tel and Micky van de Ven were the two Spurs players to miss the penalties, while Vitinha missed the opening kick for PSG.
“We are disgusted at the racial abuse that Mathys Tel has received on social media following last night’s UEFA Super Cup defeat,” Tottenham said in a statement.
“Mathys showed bravery and courage to step forward and take a penalty, yet those who abuse him are nothing but cowards – hiding behind anonymous usernames and profiles to spout their abhorrent views.”
Tel, who moved to Tottenham for a reported fee of £30 million from Bayern Munich last month – after a brief loan spell with the Premier League side last season — has been a regular for the under-21 French team.
He was part of the side that reached the quarterfinals of the under-21 European Championship in June this year, helping Le Blues reach the semifinals, where they lost 0-3 to Germany.
Tel made 20 appearances for Spurs, on loan last season, scoring thrice, and was an unused substitute in their Europa League final win against Manchester United.
“We will work with the authorities and social media platforms to take the strongest possible action against any individual we are able to identify. We stand with you, Mathys,” Tottenham added.
Racial abuse after missing penalties has been a frequent occurrence in English football, with Bukayo Saka being subject to extreme abuse on social media after he missed a penalty in the 2020 Euro final against Italy.
