Soccer-CSKA's Gyasi says he was racially abused by Levski fans

CSKA Sofia's Ghana international Edwin Gyasi said he was the victim of racial abuse from Levski Sofia fans during his team's 1-0 loss in the Bulgarian league on Sunday. The 27-year-old Gyasi, capped five times by Ghana, was sent off late in the first half of the Eternal derby as matches between the Balkan country's two most popular clubs are known.

"... and for the Levski Sofia fans: keep making those monkey sounds! It makes me feel sooooo strong and proud of where I come from," the CSKA winger wrote on Instagram. Levski denied any wrongdoing.

"I was at the match and I haven't heard any monkey noises," a Levski spokesman said. "We're not planning to issue a statement at this stage." Levski, 26-times Bulgarian champions, have been fined several times in recent years by European soccer's governing body UEFA and the Bulgarian Football Union for racist incidents.

Sunday's Sofia derby was marred by crowd trouble and police detained 44 people for public order offences. (Reporting by Angel Krasimirov, editing by Ed Osmond)