Chelsea defender, Wesley Fofana, has stated that the team has resolved its differences with Argentina midfielder, Enzo Fernandez, after his involvement in a song deemed racist.
Enzo explained to his teammates that he did not understand the offensive lyrics and was merely celebrating Argentina’s title win.
Fofana mentioned that Enzo’s explanation and apology was accepted by the team, and they no longer have any resentment towards him.
Wesley Fofana on Enzo Fernandez: “We play for the same club and badge and train together. Now I understand him. He understands me. Everybody is happy. We talked, all the team together. It was not only me and Enzo.
"It was everybody. We are in the same team and we need to go forward together. It is finished. We play together. We need to stay together. We're strong together,” he said in a post shared by ChelsTransfer account on X on July 31, 2024.
Background
When Fernandez issued an apology earlier, his Chelsea teammates were said to be 'very angry' at his actions. The French Football Federation are considering legal action and FIFA is understood to be investigating the video, where multiple Argentine players sang a song questioning the heritage of France's black and mixed-race players. This is another ugly episode in the fight against racism.
Fernandez was subsequently unfollowed on Instagram by Chelsea team-mates Malo Gusto, Benoit Badiashile and more, including Wesley Fofana, who posted the video on social media and wrote: "Football in 2024: uninhibited racism".
It remains to be seen if Chelsea will sanction the Argentine.
Read the tweet below:
Wesley Fofana on Enzo Fernandez: “We play for the same club and badge and train together. Now I understand him. He understands me. Everybody is happy.
— ChelsTransfer (@ChelsTransfer) July 31, 2024
We talked, all the team together. It was not only me and Enzo. It was everybody. We are in the same team and we need to go… pic.twitter.com/Uj65MLLvcM
SB/OGB