Lampard confirms Rudiger and Azpilicueta are taking up alleged racist incident with officials

Antonio Rudiger alleges he was targeted with racist abuse during Sunday's 2-0 win at Tottenham and it has been raised with officials.

Published : Dec 23, 2019 09:54 IST

Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger
Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger
lightbox-info

Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger

Chelsea coach Frank Lampard confirmed Antonio Rudiger and captain Cesar Azpilicueta discussed the alleged racist abuse by Tottenham Hotspur fans towards the former with Premier League officials after Sunday's match.

The Blues ran out 2-0 winner at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but the contest was marred by an incident in the second half.

READ | Racism mars Chelsea's 2-0 win over Spurs, Lampard trumps mentor Mourinho

Spurs' Son Heung-min was sent off for kicking out at Rudiger and the German reported to Azpilicueta that he had been targeted by racist chants soon after.

Lampard subsequently confirmed the pair raised the issue with Premier League officials after the fixture, while Spurs have launched their own investigation.

"My understanding is that there was a racist comment, gesture or whatever that may be," Lampard told Sky Sports .

"I've not spoken to Toni about it, but I know Cesar was there as well and now they're speaking to the officials, as they should do afterwards.

"From our point of view, whether here or at Stamford Bridge, we want the right procedure in place, so we'll leave that to them [the authorities] to get it sorted."

It had been suggested Rudiger overreacted to Son's kick, but Lampard is adamant it was deserving of a red card and he also thinks Spurs goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga was fortunate to stay on the pitch when conceding a first-half penalty for a wild and high challenge on Marcos Alonso.

"I think the penalty probably should've been a red card, because he's flown out at him with a sort of kung-fu kick.

"I don't think he meant it, so I think that was the answer from the referee [in terms of why he was only booked]. When you take someone out at that level, it can be a red, but fine we get the penalty.

"The Son one I think isn't that heavy, but it's a kick out and a kick out is a red card."

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment