Burnley players refused to shake hands with Preston North-End striker Milutin Osmajic during their FA Cup fifth-round clash on Saturday as a sign of solidarity with teammate Hannibal Mejbri.
The Burnley midfielder accused Osmajic of racially abusing him when the two sides met in the Championship earlier this month.
“I will not be silent about what happened today,” Mejbri wrote on social media post-match.
“I will always call out racism whenever I hear or see it. That is the only way we change as a sport and a society. I am a strong person but nobody should have to experience this disgusting abuse on the pitch.”
Osmajic “strongly refuted” the claims per a statement released by Preston and the incident is being investigated by the English Football Association.
The rancor stemming from the incident carried into their FA Cup meeting on Saturday, where none of the Burnley players put their hands forward to Osmajic during the pre-match handshakes. Mejbri was fit to play at Deepdale but Burnley boss Scott Parker said he left him out of the squad to “protect” his wellbeing.
After realising he was going to be shunned by the Burnley squad, Osmajic walked past the line without any interaction.
The forward went on to score Preston’s second goal in their 3-0 win and celebrated by cupping his hands around his ears to mock the away fans.
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