Israeli footballer booed during friendly

During Chelsea’s 1-0 over a Malaysian XI, Israeli star Yossi Benayoun was booed by parts of the crowd.

The game was played in the country’s capital Kuala Lumpur, during which Benayoun received racial abuse as he was booed and jeered by the crowd whenever he got the ball.                                                                                                                                                      

Having started the game, he became the first Israeli to play in Malaysia, a country which does not recognize Israel due to it’s passionate support of Palestine.                                                                                                                                                      

60% of Malaysia’s population is Muslim and despite Benayoun’s nationality there were fans who were pleased to see him, including Maei Tang who is the secretary of the Malaysian branch of the Chelsea Supporters Club who was delighted to see that the Blues brought a full first-team squad on their Asian tour.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

As for the game, Fernando Torres failed to shine as did many others and it was only a Didier Drogba deflected free-kick which saved Chelsea’s blushes as they won 1-0.                                                                                                                                          

By Scott Balaam

Twitter @theshed11