Paris - John Mensah is one of the most feared defenders in French football. But his voice trembled when he told the French daily L'Equipe about the racist taunts directed at him during a Ligue 1 match on Sunday at his home stadium in Lyon.

"I heard those things in the first half. It came from my side. It's the first time that's ever happened to me. I don't know why he did that. It's only a football match," the 26-year-old Ghana international said in an interview published Tuesday.

Deeply shaken, Mensah wanted to leave the stadium at half-time during the match between his side, first-place Lyon, and bottom-of- the-table Le Havre at halftime. But Lyon coach Claude Puel and teammate Kader Keita talked him into going back onto the pitch.

The result was two quick yellow cards for Mensah and expulsion. Puel blamed himself: "I should have taken him off the pitch earlier."

After being sent off, Mensah said he had only one thought: "I wanted to go back to Ghana, to flee. To put a stop to all that." His advisor calmed him down. On Monday, Mensah filed a complaint with the Lyon police.

The man who taunted Mensah was a Le Havre supporter and was quickly arrested. According to RTL-L'Equipe radio, he spent two nights in a Lyon jail and admitted taunting Mensah with monkey cries whenever he touched the ball.

It was not the first racist incident the Lyon defender suffered since joining the French seven-time champions in 2008.

In September, he was arrested by Lyon police because he could not make himself understood in French and, according to his description, ended up with a gun pressed to his temple in the middle of the night.

"I haven't forgotten that affair with the police; I'll never forget it," he said. "But this is different.

It was different, he said, because "he spoiled my profession. After that, I only want one thing, to go back home, to Ghana. To forget all of this."

Like many European countries, France has suffered from numerous racist incidents over the past football seasons. In 2008 alone, 14 such events were registered by police.

French Immigration Minister Eric Besson and UEFA head Michel Platini have demanded harsher punishment for the perpetrators of racist acts.

"It's unacceptable," Besson said on Sunday. "It tarnishes French football." (dpa)