Toulouse have this afternoon announced that forward Zakaria Aboukhlal’s suspension has now been lifted, after an internal investigation refuted a report from RMC that the Moroccan international had made sexist comments towards an elected official in the midst of the Coupe de France celebrations.
The outlet claims that Aboukhlal had responded to Laurence Arribagé, the city’s deputy mayor in charge of sports, after she asked the players to be quiet during manager Philippe Montanier speech, with the following: “Where I’m from, women don’t talk to men like that”.
The cup winners have now indicated that a meeting took place between Aboukhlal and Arribagé, with club management present, after which they concluded that RMC’s version of events was not accurate. As a result, the forward will now return to full training, having been sidelined from the rest of the squad as part of his suspension.
Arribagé has also reacted on Twitter, confirming that she has met with the player and club, and that she considered the matter to be closed: “I wish to turn the page on this incident, which has greatly affected me and those close to me.”
