French club Toulouse have lifted the suspension of their Moroccan player Zakaria Abu Khallal after he was suspended over allegations that he got into an argument with Laurence Aribage, deputy mayor of Toulouse for sports affairs.
The Toulouse club and Abu Halal, who was excluded from the team since Monday due to a “dispute” with an elected official in the region, on Thursday denied the report of this incident, which was revealed by RMC radio, allowing the player to return to the team on Thursday.
“We confirm that the investigation carried out by Toulouse is now closed and the player has returned to the group as of today,” the Toulouse-based club said in a statement.
On Monday, the 23-year-old Moroccan player got into a heated argument with Laurence Aribage, Toulouse’s deputy mayor in charge of sports, on April 30, according to RMC.
The player told the official that women in his country “don’t talk to men like that” after she asked him to reduce the noise and shouting during celebrations of Nantes’ 5-1 victory in the Coupe de France.
Following the news, the club decided that Abu would train “away from a professional team until further notice”, adding, “The club will not comment until the results of an internal investigation are received.”
On Thursday, Toulouse reported: “A meeting took place between Ms Laurence Aribage and our player Zakaria Abu Khalil in the presence of the club’s management.”
“Following this meeting, we came to the conclusion that the facts reported by RMC Sport do not really reflect what happened on April 30,” he added.
For the second time in a few days, all eyes are on Abu Khallal (13 goals and 5 assists in various tournaments this season).
Last Sunday, Abu Khallal refused to wear a pro-gay slogan in front of Nantes at the 35th stage of the French League, justifying his decision: “Respect is a value that I greatly value and it extends to others, but it also includes in self respect.” due to my personal beliefs. For this reason, I do not think I am the right person to participate in the match.” Such an advertising campaign.
His club did not penalize him, unlike Nantes who fined their Egyptian striker Mustafa Mohamed “financially, not athletically” after he also refused to participate under that slogan.
Source: AFP.
