Malta U-19 goalkeeper Rashid Al Tumi announced on Friday that he had forgiven San Ġwann youth nursery official Manuel Pisani after he made racist remarks about him.

Earlier this month, Al Tumi suffered abuse on social media from Pisani after the young goalkeeper condemned the murder of George Floyd in the United States.

Floyd, an unarmed black man, was killed by a white policeman in Minneapolis on May 25. The case sparked protests throughout the United States and several other countries. 

The incident also led to nationwide condemnation from the Maltese football community.

The youth Football Association on Friday brought the two parties together to has out their differences. The meeting was also attended by youth FA president Fr Hilary Tagliaferro and general secretary Joe  Micallef.

Interviewed on Net News Al Tumi on Friday expressed his satisfaction after the meeting and said that he put the incident behind him. 

“Everyone can do mistakes and everyone deserves to be forgiven,” Al Tumi told Net News.

“The most important thing is that he will not repeat his actions."

“During the meeting he encouraged me to train harder and augured me to have a successful career”

On his part, Pisani said: “I recognised my mistake and today I can say that I have a new friend in Rashed Al Tumi and I hope he will go on to enjoy a lot of success in his career.”

Micallef, the Youth FA general secretary said that he hoped that this case will send an important message to all football fans to respect everyone.

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