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When the Monkey Chants Are for You: A Soccer Star’s View of Racist Abuse

Antonio Calanni/Associated Press

MILAN — Romelu Lukaku was planning on a relaxing evening in front of the TV. He might now find himself playing in Italy, but he was looking forward to following the fortunes of two of his former teams in the Premier League.

His hopes of a quiet night ended long before the games did. Not for the first time this season, he found himself composing a message for his Twitter and Instagram feeds. Not for the first time this season, he felt compelled to speak out against racism.

The cause, in this case, was the front page of the next day’s Corriere dello Sport, one of Italy’s sports newspapers.