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When a graphic of the Inter striker was displayed on the screen, Stefano De Grandis referred to Lukaku as "that tanned gentleman next to you" and then proceeded to brand him as "the black guy at Inter" just seconds later.
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His choice of words, in describing him using his skin colour as opposed to many other superlatives he could have gone for.
The backlash has quite rightly been massive, with many calling for De Grandis to be sacked for his inappropriate comments.
Stefano De Grandis being Stefano De Grandis... "the black guy at Inter" https://t.co/96JceBqK9a
- Juan Arango (@JuanG_Arango) April 19, 2021
"Quel signore abbronzato", "il nero dell'Inter" commento vergognoso e caduta di stile da parte di un giornalista come Stefano De Grandis#Lukaku #SkySport #Inter pic.twitter.com/pkUSsiFBjX
- Andrea Righini (@AndreaRighini5) April 19, 2021
Voor de verandering maar weer eens een racist op de Italiaanse televisie. Pundit Stefano De Grandis noemt Romelu Lukaku binnen 10 seconden "die gebruinde meneer naast je" en "de zwarte van Inter".
- Wesley Victor Mak :flag_it: (@WesleyVictorMak) April 19, 2021
pic.twitter.com/tiP1flSiK4
At the time of writing, there has been no apology issued from De Grandis or Sky Sports Italia.
In 2019, another Italian pundit, Luciano Passirani, was sacked after he said the only way to stop Lukaku is "to say, here are ten bananas that you can eat."
TopCalcio24 suspended him immediately and he was then subsequently relieved of his duties.
Italian pundit Luciano Passirani after praising Romelu Lukaku: "the only way to push him down to the floor is to throw 10 bananas at him."
- Premier League Panel (@PremLeaguePanel) September 16, 2019
The problem runs so deep in Italian football. pic.twitter.com/6e6v1Nc0J3
Passirano's defence of himself saw him claim he is "not a racist" because he has black relatives.
"I would like not to pass for a racist," he told Telelombardia.
"My partner who has lived with me for 17 years is black, I have two little black granddaughters, my son's daughters. I am not a racist and I believe I am an educated person in every respect.
"In my career I met so many black players and I never had any problems."
Topics: Football, Romelu Lukaku, Inter Milan