Kevin-Prince Boateng has offered his support to Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho in the wake of racial abuse.
England was hoping to end their long years of trophy drought but was 1-1 draw after extra time but lost 4-2 on penalties by the Azzurri, extending the country’s 55-year trophy drought.
Saka, Rashford and Sancho were subjected to racial abuse on social media in the aftermath of the game.
Boateng, who now plays for Bundesliga side, Hertha Berlin has become the latest to show his support to the young trio by labelling them as young black kings in an Instagram post.
READ ALSO
The former Ghana international shared a photo of the three players, accompanied by the caption: “The future looks bright for England! Black young kings. No to racism.”
England manager Southgate also condemned the abuse directed at the players during a virtual press conference on Monday.
“For some of them to be abused is unforgivable. Some of it has come from abroad, we have been told this, but some of it is from this country,” he said.
“We have been a beacon of light to bring people together and the national team stands for everybody. We felt the energy and positivity from the fans and I’m incredibly proud of that.”
Facebook and Twitter have also been tasked to ensure users who abuse people online will be taken off or blocked.