Malcolm waved at the new Zenit St. Petersburg club through a banner labeled racist.
The Brazilian swapped Barcelona for Russia this week in a 39 million euro (36 million pounds/$44 million) deal and made his Zenit debut on Saturday in a 1-1 draw with Krasnodar, in which a segment of enthusiasts took the opportunity to applaud his team. adherence to what they see as a classic refusal to single out black players.
A banner, photographed through sports. ru, revealed in the stands: “Thanks to the control for your constancy in the traditions. “
The demonstration according to a manifesto published on the Internet through the supporters’ organization of the Landskrona club.
Fans insisted they were not racist, but that forcing black players would inevitably provoke a backlash.
“We are not racist,” the manifesto said, “and for us the absence of black players is just a tradition, emphasizing the identity of the club and nothing more.
“We, as the northernmost club of the big European cities, have never been mentally linked to Africa, as we were to South America, Australia or Oceania.
“Surely we have nothing that opposes the other people from those continents or any other, but at the same time we need players close to the spirit who speak on behalf of Zenit.
“Now Zenit’s black players are forced almost by force, and that provokes negative reactions. Let’s be what we are.
Malcom was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, where he played for Corinthians before joining French club Bordeaux in 2016.
He played two seasons in Ligue 1, scoring 20 goals in matches, before Barcelona fell last summer.
He had some tricky moments in his season at Catalonia, playing 15 times in all competitions and scoring once.
He was overcome by the desires of the Camp Nou after signing Antoine Griezmann to strengthen his attacking options.
He opted to move to Russia, where he joined fellow Brazilian player Douglas Santos, a player of color who joined the club this summer, along with Colombian Wilmar Barrios.