By Mark Baber
January 31 – AZ Alkmar striker Jozy Altidore responded to racist abuse by Den Bosch fans, Tuesday, by insisting the match continue and going on to score a penalty, as his side ran out 5-0 winners.
Altidore was targeted by a sizeable section of Den Bosch supporters during the first half of the Dutch KNVB Cup match. Play was stopped by referee Reinold Wiedemijer, as snowballs were being thrown at the assistant referees, but Altidore insisted the game continue.
Den Bosch’s players remonstrated with their fans and director Peter Bijvelds appealed to the crowd at half time, to little avail.
After the match, Altidore said: “I feel like I have an obligation as a football player, to my club, to my family, to not react to things like this and to show that the club stands better than that, that I was raised better than to respond to such ridiculous behaviour.
“All I can do is pray for them and hope they become better people. I’m not going to fight them. They just have some issues and they need some help.”
Bijvelds said in the statement: “FC Den Bosch will, aided by all those people who do good for their club, do everything in their power in the coming period to bring the perpetrators to justice.
“They do not belong in De Vliert [the Den Bosch stadium] and will have the most severe sanctions imposed on them.”
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