Marcus Thuram takes a knee in support of George Floyd after scoring twice vs Union Berlin

As the world grieves the death of George Floyd, an African-American man killed by a police officer in the USA, football stars have also come forward to protest racial discrimination. One such player is Marcus Thuram, who scored twice for Borussia Monchengladbach this past weekend and took a stand against the racially motivated killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week. 

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Marcus Thuram protests against George Floyd death

Marcus Thuram scored twice against Union Berlin on Sunday in the Bundesliga. Florian Neuhaus opened the scoring for Monchengladbach in the 17th minute of the game. However, it was Thuram who grabbed headlines. The striker headed in his first goal in the 41st minute after a splendid cross from Alassane Plea. The player then went on to take a knee as a mark of protest against the killing of George Floyd. 

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George Floyd death: Marcus Thuram scores twice on Bundesliga Matchday 29

Sebastion Anderson pulled one back for Union Berlin in the 50th minute, but Marcus Thuram quickly restored his side's two-goal lead. He scored his second goal of the night in the 59th minute, after receiving a low-lying cross from Plea this time. Plea, after assisting Thuram, got himself on the score sheet when he latched onto Ramy Bensebaini's cross to score the fourth goal for his side. 

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George Floyd death: Monchengladbach coach supports Marcus Thuram

Marcus Thuram had the complete backing of Monchengladbach coach Marco Rose. While speaking to the media after the game, Rose asserted that Marcus Thuram had made a point with his celebration. He further claimed that Thuram had set an example against racism and the entire squad was against racial discrimination. Rose was, however, not the only personality to support Thuram. Real Betis defender Marc Bartra shared the 22-year-old's image on Twitter with the caption, "#BlackLivesMatter" and "#NoToRacism."

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George Floyd death: Thuram's celebration resembles Colin Kaepernick kneeling

Marcus Thuram's knee celebration has taken the world back to Colin Kaepernick kneeling in 2016. The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback went down on his knee during the American national anthem in the 2016 NFL season to protest against racism and hate crimes against African-Americans in the country. However, he received flak from President Donald Trump back then and ultimately found himself out of the NFL at the end of the season. Kaepernick also joined in the protests in the USA and volunteered to pay the legal fees of the protesters that were arrested this past weekend.