Swansea say Ji-sung Eom was target of alleged racist abuse at Millwall

Swansea City head coach Vitor Matos said a lengthy stoppage during his side's Championship match at Millwall was prompted by racist abuse directed at Ji-sung Eom. The South Korea winger was among the substitutes and had been warming up on the side of the pitch when play was halted.

Referee Edward Duckworth held lengthy discussions with both sets of coaches before the match resumed. An announcement over the speakers at The Den confirmed there had been alleged chants of racism and that police were working to identify any offenders using CCTV.

Ji-sung Eom is a 24-year-old South Korea winger and has scored two goals in seven Championship appearances this season.

"The situation was with Ji-sung Eom," said Matos. "The referee followed the protocol for these sort of situations, they did the right thing. Millwall also did the right thing to get the protocol moving on. "We all know there is no space for this, this kind of situation should not happen. "When they do happen we are here to stand with the player, in this case it is our player."

Matos said he was saddened by what happened and that the squad would support their team-mate. "He is a smart kid, he is not happy with the situation but he knows we will stay with him and follow the situation as long as we can," added Matos. "Millwall did the right thing by announcing there is no place for this sort of thing. "I'm happy with how it was handled, but really sad that it happened. Now it is about evaluating the situation and we'll see what happens."

Millwall issued a statement acknowledging the allegation. The club said it was "aware of an alleged, individual incident of discriminatory abuse towards a Swansea City player during the second half" of the game. "The club operates a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of discriminatory abuse. Any individual found to have engaged in such behaviour will face the strongest possible action," added the hosts. "The club is working alongside the relevant authorities to establish the facts and is unable to comment further as tonight's alleged incident is the subject of an ongoing police investigation, which the club fully supports."

A late strike from Ronald secured a 1-0 victory for Swansea, who remain the league leaders. The win kept Swansea two points clear at the top of the Championship, with the Welsh club putting together their best start to a season in a century.