The Curva Nord have made their message clear ahead of the return of Romelu Lukaku to the San Siro with Roma – they’ll be showing their absolute disapproval, but demand no racism towards the Belgian.
The group put out an official statement on social media on the matter, as reported by FCInterNews.
The return of Lukaku to the San Siro has been long-awaited following the striker’s tempestuous summer transfer saga with Inter.
The 30-year-old’s antics alienated the Nerazzurri and his former teammates. And it also led to an angry response from the club’s fans.
The feeling among most Inter supporters is that Lukaku’s negotiations with rivals Juventus and AC Milan were a betrayal of sorts.
Therefore, there is little doubt that Nerazzurri fans will show their anger when Lukaku comes to the San Siro in a Roma shirt.
The Nord have promised to distribute whistles to make the vitriol as loud as possible.
And the authorities are reportedly doing what they can to put a stop to the use of these whistles, which could prove disruptive to the match.
But what seems clear is that, whistles or no whistles, the response to Lukaku will be an angry one from the San Siro crowd.
Curva Nord Urge No Racism Against Lukaku
Another potential layer to the volatile scenario is the possibility for racial abuse against former Inter striker Lukaku.
Several recent incidents have highlighted the undeniable fact that racism towards black players from crowds is still sadly an issue within Italian football.
And striker Lukaku has been a player at the centre of a number of the most high-profile incidents.
This included back in April, when Juventus fans made “monkey” chants at the Belgian during a Coppa Italia tie.
And the Curva Nord themselves do not exactly have the best record when it comes to the issue of fan racism.
When Lukaku experienced racist taunts from Cagliari fans during an away match in Sardinia, the Nord dismissed the racial abuse as “not racist.”
Given the precedent for racist abuse in Italian stadium, the worry that the anti-Lukaku sentiment could lead some fans to show their anger with racist chants is hardly unfounded.
But for their part, the Nord are making clear that they’re urging all Inter fans to avoid racism against the 30-year-old. striker.
The Nerazzurri ultras group certainly want Lukaku feel the fans’ wrath after what happened in the summer. But they want to keep racism out of it.
The Nord writes, “Let’s not fall into banality and stupidity tomorrow.”
“Leave racism outside the stadium,” they make clear. “That’s not something we associate with.”
“Tomorrow we have to support our colours and urge the team on to be stronger than ever and win.”
And as far as Lukaku goes, the Nord write that “Let’s make clear that Milano is a city he’s no longer welcome in.”
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