Bukayo saka received a standing ovation from Brentford Y Arsenal fans after entering as a substitute in the first Premier League match Friday night.
The star of England, 19, suffered a torrent of racist abuse online after missing the decisive penalty in the final shootout of Euro 2020 against Italy last month.
But there has been none of that in his return to football, with Brentford fans following the example of their Tottenham counterparts in a preseason friendly last week showing his support for the young man despite his employment at a rival London club.
"It was wonderful at Tottenham and it is wonderful again tonight," said Sky Sports commentator Martin Tyler. "Bukayo Saka is a charming young footballer and he must be touched by the reception tonight."
Ahead of Tottenham's preseason game against Arsenal at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday, LGBT + supporter group Proud Lilywhites displayed a banner in support of Saka and other footballers subjected to prejudice and discrimination.
The banner read: โNorth London stands with Bukayo Saka and all the players against racism and discrimination. COYS [Come on you Spurs]! "
Saka was then applauded on the field by home fans after being introduced as a replacement for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang during the second half.
In a sentence released four days after England's defeat, Saka called on social media companies to do more to combat racism and hate online on their platforms.
"To the social media platforms Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, I don't want any child or adult to have to receive the hateful and hurtful messages that I, Marcus and Jadon have received this week," he said. I knew instantly the kind of hate I was about to receive and it is a sad reality that your powerful platforms are not doing enough to stop these messages.
โThere is no place for racism or hatred of any kind in football or in any area of โโsociety and for the majority of people to come together to call the people who send these messages, take action and report these comments to the police and drive eliminating hatred by being nice to each other, we will win. "
Police arrested 11 people in connection with the racial abuse of Saka and England teammates Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford last week.
In the first Premier League game at full capacity since March last year, it was fitting that the team hosting the opening game was Brentford, which was last in the top flight 74 years ago.
Brentford's last game in the First Division, as it was known in 1947, was against Arsenal, the rival on Friday night.
Sergi Canos scored the first goal of the Premier League season after missing Calum Chambers and shooting Bernd Leno before Christian Norgaard capitalized on poor Arsenal defense to double the home team's lead.
Brentford welcomed a full-capacity crowd to its gleaming new stadium adjacent to the M4 motorway for the first time.
