Cadiz vs Valencia racism scandal continues

The 24-year-old Valencia centre back Mouctar Diakhaby was the target of alleged racist abuse at the Estadio Ramon de Carranza on Sunday, and reacted furiously after a first-half clash with Cadiz's Juan Cala.

Cala says he is being 'publicly lynched' as the Cadiz player hosted a press conference to strenuously deny allegations that he aimed a racial slur at Diakhaby after the Valencia defender claimed he was called a 's****y black'.

The Frenchman of Guinean descent decided not to continue playing but asked his teammates to return to the field to complete the game. Valencia lost the game 2-1.

A sad day for the sport

Diakhaby revealed in a two-minute video uploaded to his Twitter page on Tuesday that he heard Cala label him a 's****y black' during the exchange.

The Valencia star added that an unnamed Cadiz player asked if he would carry on playing if Cala apologised for the slur.

However, Cala has defended himself in a press conference. The 31-year-old insists he said 'leave me in peace' to Diakhaby, as first reported by Dermot Corrigan, and that claims a team-mate had spoken to the Valencia player about an apology are 'false'.

Cala added that he would leave football if Diakhaby's claims are proven true, and that he is being 'publicly lynched'.

The Cadiz player went onto state that there is no proof against him and that he will pursue legal action against Valencia president Anil Murthy, while there is 'no racism in Spanish football'.

Valencia have staunchly backed their man following Sunday's alleged incident. Since the game, Valencia have released a 10-point statement entitled 'no to racism' on their official website.

Valencia's 10-point statement 'No To Racism'

1. Mouctar Diakhaby today became the latest victim of racism in football.

2. After receiving a racial insult -unacceptable in any circumstances- he was shown a yellow card for his protests.

3. We are proud of the support that Diakhaby received from his teammates, and of the decision taken to leave the field of play together.

4. We trust that the matter will be investigated.

5. We are disappointed that no official decision was taken.

6. The Club does not ask the players to return to the pitch. The referee informed the players of the consequences of not going back out onto the field of play. The players, forced to play under threat of penalty after the racist insults and the yellow card to Diakhaby, decide to return to the pitch.

7. Diakhaby requested that his teammates return to the pitch to continue the game. They respected his wish.

8. The events of today should not be repeated ever again on a football pitch.

9. Valencia CF strongly oppose racism in all forms and stands with Diakhaby. Today is a sad day for our sport.

10. Today was not a loss in a game. It was a loss respect, a loss of the spirit of football and sport.

Standing as one at training; the first-team squad, manager Javi Gracia, his coaching staff and president Anil Murthy all stood together and showed their palms of their right hand to indicate to put a stop to racism.

The incident happened 30 minutes into the LaLiga clash between the two sides - Diakhaby was seen shouting at Cala after their clash and was held back by a team-mate and Cadiz defender Fali.

He then spoke to the referee to explain what had taken place, before moments later walking off the pitch followed by his teammates as well as opposing players. Sportsmail understand that Diakhaby was left 'devastated' following the incident.

Referee David Medie Jimenez said in his report that Diakhaby had told him Cala had used a racial slur against him, although Cadiz manager Alvaro Cervera said his player had assured him he had not insulted the Frenchman.

It was the first time a LaLiga match had been halted following an accusation of racism.

The rest of the Valencia players believe Diakhaby's version of events and showed this solidarity by walking off the pitch together.

Both sets of players were given five minutes to warm up before resuming the game, while Diakhaby opted to watch on from the stands.

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After the game it has been reported by Carrusel Deportivo that Cala denies having said anything offensive to Diakhaby and is in a 'state of shock'.

Diakhaby's teammate Jose Gaya spoke after the game and suggested that Valencia would have forfeited the game if they hadn't gone back onto the pitch.

'Diakhaby told us he heard a racist insult so we all went off the pitch.' Gaya told Spanish network Movistar.

'We were told that we had to play because if we didn't they would take the three points off us and maybe we'd be docked more points. Diakhaby asked us to play on, we wouldn't have done so if he hadn't done so. He said he wasn't in the right state of mind to keep playing. He is devastated.'

Gaya added he had heard the comment Cala made to Diakhaby, describing it as 'a very ugly insult which I won't repeat'.

Cadiz have also released a statement on their website in which they say they are 'against all forms of racism' and have 'complete confidence in the integrity' of their squad members who are 'staunch supporters' of the fight against racism.

Cadiz club statement

Following the events that occurred during the match against Valencia Club de Fútbol, Cádiz Club de Fútbol wishes to make the following remarks:

- We are against all forms of racism or xenophobia, regardless of who is responsible, and work hard to help eradicate this. Anyone guilty of such an offence, whether or not they belong to our team, must be punished.

- We have complete confidence in the integrity of our squad members, who are staunch supporters of the fight against racism and have at all times shown an exemplary attitude in every match the team has played.

- The club cannot comment on incidents that arise between players during the course of the play, and always demands respect and responsibility from its players in their attitude towards opponents.

- We work hard, and will continue to work hard, to stamp all xenophobic behaviour out of the game, offering a loud and clear message of 'NO TO RACISM'.

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Cadiz coach Alvaro Cervera took Cala off at half-time, and said he did it because he was already on a booking and did not want to risk him getting sent off.

The manager added also that he believed his player's denial of racial abuse. Valencia coach Javi Gracia said his player had been 'seriously insulted' and was 'quite shaken'.

'Diakhaby said to us that he was not in the proper state of mind to continue to play, but he understood that we had to go back on the pitch to avoid some sort of punishment.'