- Fernandez was named Chelsea captain for their Premier League opener
- The Argentine caused a storm of racism during the Copa America celebrations
- LISTEN NOW: It’s all about to begin! Available wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Monday and Thursday
Football fans were surprised after Chelsea named Enzo Fernandez as captain for the Premier League season opener against Manchester City.
It was one of a number of bold moves made by new Blues boss Enzo Maresca ahead of his first competitive game in charge at Stamford Bridge, with the Italian dropping Raheem Sterling from the matchday squad.
The decision to give Fernandez the captain’s armband was met with controversy, with the £107 million player sparking a racism storm following Argentina’s Copa America victory.
A video posted on Instagram shows Fernandez and some of his Argentine teammates singing an offensive song about the fact that some French players have African roots.
French defender Wesley Fofana, one of Fernandez’s teammates and originally from Ivoria, shared the images, calling them “unabashed racism”.
Fernandez was named Chelsea captain for their season opener against Manchester City
He caused a racism storm on Instagram after winning the Copa America with Argentina
Philippe Diallo, the president of the French Football Federation (FFF), also condemned the video, calling it “racist and discriminatory”.
Fernandez later apologized, saying the words he said in the video “do not reflect my beliefs or my character.”
It seems Fernandez has done enough internally to regain the trust of his teammates and manager, as he has now been named captain for the match against City, much to the surprise of fans on social media.
@Mobyhaque1 wrote on X: ‘Enzo Fernandez is their captain after what happened this summer? That club is pure comedy.’
@mediocentr0 added: ‘Enzo Fernandez is committing racism. His punishment? Chelsea gives him the captain’s armband.’
@MarkOgden_ wrote: ‘No Raheem Sterling in the Chelsea squad, Sanchez starts in goal despite new GK, summer signing Dewsbury-Hall on the bench and Enzo Fernandez wears the captain’s armband. Nothing is ever easy at Chelsea…’
@UtdEra_ posted: ‘Chelsea also decided to appoint Enzo Fernandez after the racism scandal. A very strange club’.
Maresca said ahead of the match against City that Fernandez was one of the options to wear the captain’s armband and that the racism saga had been resolved.
Some in the football community were surprised when Fernandez was named captain
Maresca wasn’t afraid to shake things up within his squad for the Premier League season opener
The decision caused headaches for many, given the storm of racism unleashed by Fernandez
The Argentine star quickly apologized for the controversial live video on Instagram
“He is one of the captains,” Maresca told Sky Sports.
“He is not the only captain, but he is the captain today. I see his teammates, they like him as a player and as a person.
‘We all make mistakes sometimes. The most important thing is to acknowledge it and then it’s over.’
After the racism storm, Fernandez promised to make a significant donation to a charity that works against discrimination.
Fofana, one of five French players in Chelsea’s senior squad, also revealed in late July that he had smoothed over matters with Fernandez, insisting the Argentine “is not a racist”.
“It’s just that the video is bad,” Fofana said during Chelsea’s pre-season tour of America.
“It’s not just Enzo. It’s the Argentine team. Enzo is in the video, but if he was from another country I would have posted the same thing. It was definitely a big story because we play in the same team.
“But now that it’s over, it’s good. I’m happy with this situation because he understands me, I understand him, he said sorry, I trust him, and that’s the most important thing.”