WESLEY FOFANA says Enzo Fernandez is “not a racist” and declared any issue between the Chelsea stars “finished”.
Fernandez joined Chelsea’s pre-season tour on Monday, two weeks after streaming a video of himself and Argentina teammates singing a racist chant about France’s black players.
Fofana hit out at the “uninhibited racism” in the video but has now deleted the post after holding face-to-face talks with the midfielder in Atlanta.
He said: “It’s simple.
“He arrived on Monday and we talked with the manager. We talked together.
“I explained why I didn’t like the video. He explained, he said sorry because he did not want to hurt French fans or anyone.
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“He did not understand when singing it. He did not understand. And I trust him.
“Because I know him. I know he is not racist. The act, I felt a little bit upset. But now, it is done. It is finished.
“We play for the same club and badge and train together. Now I understand him. He understands me. Everybody is happy.”
Fernandez spoke to a small group of players, including Fofana, Reece James and Axel Disasi, before addressing the group and apologising once more.
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It was the first time the Argentina international had spoken to the French defender directly since posting the video.
The club record signing has also made a donation to a anti-discrimination charity – though Fofana says he does not care about the money and wants his teammate to be further educated.
Speaking after training alongside Fernandez in Georgia, added: “I hope this has educated him a bit, because for sure, it is a different culture.
“I don’t care about the money. He loses money. I don’t want Enzo to lose money.
“The donation is good but the most important thing is not to repeat the act and that we educate everybody.
“He is an example because Enzo is a big player, a big star. He understands that and I’m happy like this.
“I don’t think a big sanction for Enzo is a good process.
“We need to educate about this because cultures are different, a lot of countries.
“We don’t have the same education, for good or bad. But we need to educate everybody if we don’t want a repeat.”
Fofana also revealed that he was keen to clear the air in order to benefit the whole team and avoid a situation where two key players are not talking.
The ex-Leicester defender said: “We need to stay together. We’re strong together.
“If I’m on one side and Enzo is on the other side and we fight every day or we don’t talk or we’re not happy, on the pitch then we don’t play well.
“That’s not only me and Enzo. It’s all the team. It is for that, that we talked.
“I know Enzo. He is not racist. It is just the video is bad. It’s not only Enzo.
“It’s the Argentinian team. I posted this because I felt upset about the video.
“Enzo is in the video but if he was from another country, I would have posted the same thing. For sure, it was a big story because we play in the same team.”
After two years of injury problems Fofana is now hoping a full pre-season can kick start his Chelsea career.
It is just over a year since the £70million signing had to undergo knee surgery which ruled him out for most of last season.
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He said: “I feel good, confident. I know I am strong but for sure the fitness and routine is hard because training every day and having games is hard but day by day I feel better, every game and every session.
“When I signed for Chelsea I realised my dream and I want to perform. I want to win titles, I am hungry and I want to win titles for sure. I am ready to work hard for that.”
Meet Pep Guardiola disciple Enzo Maresca
ENZO MARESCA is considered among the most exciting young coaches on the planet.
Born in Italy in 1980, he managed to guide Leicester to the Championship title in his first season as Foxes boss.
His management career started at Italian minnows Ascoli before he was snapped up by Man City in 2020 to manage their Elite Development Squad.
He guided the youth team to the Premier League 2 title in his one season working for the Citizens – with Cole Palmer in the side.
His first senior job was with Parma but he was sacked after just a few months after failing to impress.
Despite the team playing in Serie B and Maresca having an impressive squad he was unable to get them on course for promotion.
He returned to Man City and worked as one of Pep Guardiola’s assistants for the 2022/23 season as they won the Treble.
He took over relegated Leicester last summer and made an immediate impact, with the Foxes winning the Championship title.
Maresca showed his dedication to the job by living at the training ground for the first two months after his appointment.
He’s considered something of a Pep disciple and has said: “For a coach, it’s important to have the mentality of a chess player.”
During his playing career he played under Carlo Ancelotti and Marcello Lippi – and alongside ex-Brighton boss Roberto de Zerbi.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
