Wilfried Zaha has highlighted racist abuse he was sent online after Crystal Palace’s victory at Manchester City on Saturday.
Zaha scored the opener in Palace’s 2-0 win, which also saw City defender Aymeric Laporte sent off for a foul on the forward.
The Ivory Coast international subsequently posted screenshots on Instagram of racist abuse he had received following the match.
And Zaha wrote: “This message isn’t for me to get a million messages saying we stand with you and it’s disgusting or about me getting sympathy.
“I’m not here for all the nonsense that is being done instead of fixing the actual problem!
“I don’t mind abuse because nowadays it comes with doing the job I do even though it’s not an excuse, but my colour will always be the real problem, but it’s fine because I’ll always be BLACK AND PROUD!
“Speak to me when you actual take this issue serious.”
Instagram confirmed on Sunday that it was investigating the matter.
A spokesperson from Instagram’s parent company Meta, previously known as Facebook, said: “No one should have to experience racist abuse anywhere. Sending messages like this on Instagram is completely against our rules and we have removed the accounts who sent the abuse from Instagram.
“We also want to help protect people from having to see this abuse in the first place. That’s why we’ve developed safety features like Hidden Words, which filters offensive comments and DMs, and Limits, which lets you hide comments and messages from people who don’t follow you, or who only followed you recently.”
Zaha became the first Premier League player not to take a knee before kick-off back in March, saying at the time:
“There is no right or wrong decision, but for me personally I feel kneeling has just become a part of the pre-match routine and at the moment it doesn’t matter whether we kneel or stand, some of us still continue to receive abuse.
“I know there is a lot of work being done behind the scenes at the Premier League and other authorities to make change, and I fully respect that, and everyone involved. I also fully respect my team-mates and players at other clubs who continue to take the knee.
“As a society, I feel we should be encouraging better education in schools, and social media companies should be taking stronger action against people who abuse others online – not just footballers.
“I now just want to focus on football and enjoy being back playing on the pitch. I will continue to stand tall.”
