Rafa Mir denies racist insult after row with Omar El Hilali | OneFootball

El día después on Movistar+ aired new footage of the late three-minute stoppage in Elche v Espanyol, when a flashpoint between Rafa Mir and Omar El Hilali halted play. El Hilali told the referee he had heard a racist remark from Mir, the official recorded it and the anti-racism protocol was applied.

The players give conflicting accounts. El Hilali maintains Mir told him he had arrived by small boat, while Mir says his comment was a non-racial threat.

In the footage, Mir is heard denying he used the word moro and adds to a team-mate that he considers himself more of that than his opponent. Other Espanyol players admonish him, calling him a clown and a coward, and Terrats tells him he has quite a CV.

Mir’s defence also points to El Hilali as the first to insult him, with both players covering their mouths during the exchange.

From the Elche camp, the view is that El Hilali targeted their number 10 from the outset, with repeated run-ins that culminated in the minute 78 confrontation in which the complaint about Mir’s words was made.

Source: El Periódico Mediterráneo