Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez statement on 'racist' video receives almighty backlash

Chelsea has come under fire for its lacklustre statement regarding the racist video posted involving Enzo Fernandez, notably omitting to name the Argentine midfielder.

The controversy erupted after the Blues ' player was seen celebrating Copa America victory on Sunday night with his teammates, live-streaming a chant from the team bus that allegedly contained racist remarks aimed at French players and their heritage.

Fernandez has since issued an apology, stating, "those words, do not reflect my character or beliefs". With several black French teammates at Chelsea, including Wesley Fofana who has publicly denounced the video, the incident has led to a significant backlash, with numerous players reportedly unfollowing Fernandez on social media platforms.

Despite the uproar, Chelsea's official response has been criticised for its vagueness and failure to directly address Fernandez's involvement. Their statement read: "We acknowledge and appreciate our player's public apology and will use this as an opportunity to educate. The Club has instigated an internal disciplinary procedure."

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The reaction to the club's statement has been overwhelmingly negative, with many fans expressing their dissatisfaction. Comments from supporters included: "What a ---- statement, disgusting." "Is that it? " and "That is not a statement", reflecting the sentiment that the club has not adequately dealt with the situation.

Fofana expressed his thoughts on the matter by tweeting a clip from the footage and simply stating: " Football in 2024: uninhibited racism."

The French Football Federation, in a statement, said its president, Philippe Diallo, would challenge FIFA president, Gianni Infantino, and the Argentina FA to respond to the alleged remarks.

They stated: "Faced with the seriousness of these shocking remarks, contrary to the values of sport and human rights, the president of the FFF decided to directly challenge his Argentinian counterpart and Fifa, and to file a legal complaint for insulting remarks of a racist and discriminatory nature."

FIFA president Infantino has previously stated that football and its 211 national federations must adopt a zero-tolerance approach to racism. In May, he committed to relaunching a task force to monitor incidents - which is now likely to be put to the test.

The full lyrics to the song, sung by the Argentine team, are: "Listen, spread the word, they play in France, but they are all from Angola, they are going to run well, they like to sleep with trans people, their mum is Nigerian, their dad is Cameroonian, but on the passport it says: French."