Marcus Rashford said he was "on the verge of tears" at the messages of support he received after his mural was vandalized in the city of Manchester following England's defeat to Italy in the Euro 2020 final on Sunday.
Rashford's missed penalty contributed to England's 3-2 shootout defeat at London's Wembley Stadium, prompting online racist abuse against him & teammates Jadon Sancho & Bukayo Saka, who are all Black.
A mural depicting Rashford in his hometown was later torn down.
The mural, a community street art project based on a photograph by Daniel Cheetham & painted by street artist Akse, was created in Rahonour, Withington, Manchester, & read: "Be proud to know that your struggle serves your purpose. Will play a big role."
The mutilated part of the mural was covered with tarpaulin & people were also posting letters of support & red hearts on the wall.
Rashford responded on Monday, saying "how positively I was on the verge of tears seeing the overwhelming response & response in Withington."
"The communities that have wrapped their arms around me are holding me," he said on social media. He also tweeted pictures of hand-written positive notes that he received.
The Manchester United forward was honored for his work in campaigning for free school meals for the most vulnerable children in British society.
"I can criticize my performance all day long, but I will never apologize for who I am & where I came from," Rashford said.
The vandalism was widely condemned.
Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said of the incident, "It is a disgusting, shameful act. And 99.9% of the people will be completely shocked & want strong action."
We're all behind you, @MarcusRashford.
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) July 12, 2021
As a player. As a person. As an inspiration to our club and our supporters. As a representation of hope that there is plenty more good than bad in the world ❤️#MUFC #ManUtd #Rashford pic.twitter.com/qPRxrKQXEz
After Rashford's penalty miss, Sancho & Saka also failed to score, allowing Italy to claim the trophy, & all three were targets of racist abuse on social media.
"The FA strongly condemns all forms of discrimination & is appalled by the online racism aimed at some of our England players on social media," the FA said in a statement.
“We cannot explain why anyone behind such disgusting behavior is not welcome to follow the team. We do everything possible to support the affected players, urging the harshest punishments for the players responsible. do."
The England team also issued a statement condemning the abuse, which read: "We are disgusted that some of our squad - who have given everything to shirts this summer - have been discriminatory after tonight's game. have been victims of abuse."
England, who had reached their first major final since 1966, took the lead in the match with an opening goal from Luke Shaw before Leonardo Bonucci equalized for Italy in the second half & scored 1–1 by the end of extra time. 1 stay.