Armand, young player from PSG Academy aged 13, victim of violence during a football tournament in Portugal

The celebration turned into a nightmare. As reported by the Unifoot media on its social networks a few days ago, a young player from the PSG Academy – a private and independent structure of the Parisian club – participating in the international U15 football tournament in Porto, Portugal, was violently targeted by other participants at the event.

According to the media, young players from the Parisian selection were allegedly victims of racist insults and monkey chants from an opposing team and even from some parents.

Defending his teammates, 13-year-old Armand, who plays for Montrouge club during the season, was aggressively assaulted. He was then taken to a hospital in Porto. Initial examinations revealed a nasal fracture and a head trauma due to the blows to his face.

“We love football, but we’ve never seen racism like this. He wanted to protect his friend, he ended up in the emergency room. The children are all shocked,” his mother told Unifoot.

On Sunday evening, the Montrouge club showed support on its social networks to their young player, his family, and “all the young players affected by this situation” expressing “strong indignation and condemning racism and violence during an international tournament.”

“Our young player Armand, who courageously defended a teammate subjected to racist remarks and monkey chants, was assaulted and taken to the hospital following this incident,” the statement continued with a photo of Armand. “These events are deeply shocking and go against the fundamental values of sport, respect, and coexistence that we promote daily within our club.”

“The courage he showed in defending a teammate shows how much Armand is an exemplary player filled with values,” stated the club on Instagram. “Racism and violence have no place in sports or society. Football should remain a space for education, respect, and brotherhood.”

The club also thanked “the president of Paris Saint Germain” for “the support given to our little Montrougien.” The statement ended with “Armand you are a hero!!!”

According to our information, Nasser Al-Khelaïfi personally called Armand and his family to express support and invited them to a future PSG match at Parc des Princes.