Brentford condemn racist abuse against Ivan Toney following Arsenal clash

Brentford have released a statement to condemn the racist abuse Ivan Toney received following their clash with Arsenal yesterday.

The striker scored his side’s only goal as Brentford halted Arsenal’s title charge, forcing the Gunners to drop points. It was Arsenal’s second sloppy Premier League game after losing to Sean Dyche’s Everton.

Following the game, fans took to social media to insult Toney for doing his job. Unfortunately, these incidents have become common occurrences, and Brentford ordered them to stop.

New Arsenal signing Leandro Trossard gave his side the lead before Toney equalised controversially.

Christian Norgaard was visibly offside in the buildup to his goal, but VAR official Lee Mason reportedly forgot to draw offside lines.

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) confirmed that chief refereeing officer Howard Webb acknowledged and explained the significant errors in the VAR process to Arsenal.

However, Brentford will point to a perfectly legal goal they did not get in the first half. Bryan Mbuemo outmuscled Gabriel Magalhaes and finished a knockdown, but it did not stand.

Brentford released a statement saying: “Immediately after Brentford’s game against Arsenal, Ivan Toney received a barrage of abusive, racist direct messages via his Instagram account. 

“We are disgusted and saddened that Ivan has had to deal with this yet again. We will not tolerate it and we will do everything we can to pursue the individuals involved. 

“Ivan was subject to similar abuse in October last year, and the perpetrator is now facing the consequences in court. 

“How many times does this need to happen?

“We call on football fans everywhere to relish the competition and rivalry that exists between us, but to respect and embrace our differences and celebrate the diversity that exists throughout the Premier League. There is no room for racism.”

Apart from the goal, Toney was superb for the Bees against Arsenal. The England international dominated Magalhaes and especially William Saliba.

Toney won 12 of his 13 aerial duels and five of his seven ground duels. He also hit the woodwork and created one big chance against the table toppers.

He has netted 14 goals in 20 league appearances this season while creating nine big chances for his teammates. He plays 0.9 key passes per game despite his poor passing accuracy.

Toney is leading Brentford into the top half of the table, and they could finish in one of the European spots if they keep up this momentum. 

Brentford are unbeaten in their last ten league games and just five points away from fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur.