In the Europa League group stage matches played early this morning, the
Austrian team
A come-from-behind victory over North Macedonia with a score of 3:1. Shanghai Harbour's midfielder Arnautovic sealed the win in the closing stages of the game, however, his celebrations after scoring the goal sparked a post-match debate.
The scene took place near the end of the match, when Arnautovic scored a crucial goal with his individual ability to seal the win for Austria. However, after the goal, an emotional Arnautovic's provocative behavior towards North Macedonian defender Alioski appeared to be related to the opponent's earlier fierce defense against the Austrian player.
It is rumored that Arnautovic spoke out against Alioski's Albanian mother during the celebration, an act that is suspected of racial discrimination.
There is no official word on what exactly Arnautovic said. However, judging from Austria captain Alaba's quick move to stop Arnautovic and calm him down, Arnautovic's words may indeed have been too strong.
After the match, the North Macedonian media have condemned Arnautovic's behavior and called for him to be banned. UEFA has also consistently shown zero tolerance for racial discrimination.
Tonight BST, Arnautovic clarified his words and actions via social media.
He wrote on social media, "Yesterday (CET), due to my emotions, I said some over the top words and I would like to apologize for that, especially to my Macedonian and Albanian friends in North Macedonia.
"I want to make it clear that I am not a racist! I have friends all over the world and I advocate for multiculturalism. Anyone who knows me knows that."
Arnautovic, whose father is Serbian and mother Austrian, holds dual Serbian and Austrian citizenship and ultimately chose to play for Austria.
From what has gone before, Arnautovic is not a racist. As he said, he has friends of all backgrounds. For example, despite the tensions between Serbs and Croats in the former Yugoslavia region, at Shanghai Seaport, Arnautovic, who has Serbian roots, got along well with Croatian head coach Leko and teammate Mestorovic.
Players, including other former South Region foreigners playing in the Chinese Super League, were also good friends with Arnautovic. They would meet every day for coffee and chat during the tournament's closure, and would also get together in Shanghai during the holidays.
