Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana has hit out at racist chants made by Argentina players in footage shared by apologetic teammate Enzo Fernandez.
Argentina beat Colombia 1-0 in the Copa America final on Sunday, making it back-to-back victories in the competition having also won the World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
However, social media footage on Chelsea star Fernandez’s Instagram showed the Argentine squad chanting about the France international team.
The song references how many of France’s players are of African heritage, with a translated version being: “They play for France, but their parents are from Angola. Their mother is from Cameroon, while their father is from Nigeria. But their passport says French.”
It is believed that Chelsea are investigating the video, which has been slammed by fans online.
Meanwhile all of the club’s French players in Fofana, Axel Disassi, Benoit Badiashille, Malo Gusto, Lesley Ugochukwu, Christopher Nkunku and Malang Sarr have unfollowed Fernandez on social media.
Fernandez, who will now be enjoying a post-season break before reporting back to Chelsea, was sharing a live video on Instagram when the vile chant was heard on the team bus before the footage was abruptly ended.
Amid the celebrations, no player could be identified by the footage over who was singing the chant.
Chelsea centre-back Fofana, who is the son of an Ivorian father, took to social media to share the video, where he fired a stinging message towards the Argentina squad.
The French defender wrote: “Le football en 2024 : racisme decomplexe,” which loosely translates to: “Football in 2024: uninhibited racism.”
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Following Fofana’s social media post, Fernandez has issued an apology, where he has stressed he doesn’t agree with the words that were sung.
Taking to his Instagram story, he wrote: “I want to apologise sincerely for a video posted on my Instagram channel during the national team celebrations.
“The song includes highly offensive language and there is absolutely no excuse for these words.
“I stand against discrimination in all forms and apologise for getting caught up in the euphoria of our Copa America celebrations.
“That video, that moment, those words, do not reflect my beliefs or my character. I am truly sorry.”
Argentina played France in the World Cup final in 2022, which finished 3-3 and went to penalties.
The Albiceleste went on to claim victory in the shootout despite Kylian Mbappe scoring a hat-trick as Lionel Messi bagged twice and lifted his first World Cup.
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It was during this match when the chant was heard from sections of the Argentine fans at the Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar.
And the chants made by the Argentina squad following their Copa America triumph have resulted in the French Football Federation (FFF) lodging a complaint with FIFA over the ‘shocking’ remarks.
An FFF statement on Tuesday read: “The president of the French Football Federation, Philippe Diallo, condemns in the strongest terms the unacceptable racist and discriminatory remarks which were made against the players of the French team in the context of a song sung by players and supporters of the Argentina team after its victory in the Copa America and broadcast in a video on social media.
“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 Argentine counterpart and FIFA and to file a legal complaint for insulting remarks of a racial and discriminatory nature.”
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It was Lautaro Martinez who scored an extra-time winner for Argentina against Colombia at the Hard Rock Stadium, where a security breach led to the match being delayed by 75 minutes.
Messi, meanwhile, was forced off with a gruesome injury to his ankle that saw his foot horrifically swell up.
