- Argentina kicked off its Olympic football campaign against Morocco on Wednesday
- Their national anthem was booed by fans in Saint Etienne before kick-off
- The booing came just over a week after Argentina’s players chanted a “racist” chant
Argentina’s national anthem was booed on Wednesday afternoon ahead of the Argentina men’s national team’s first match at the Olympic Games in Paris, amid a racist storm surrounding Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez.
The South American nation opened their campaign against Morocco with the players lining up for the customary national anthems before kick-off.
As the Argentine national anthem was played in the Saint Etienne stadium hall, it was met with loud cheers from the crowd.
The boos that drowned out the national anthem came more than a week after Fernandez filmed himself and his Argentina teammates singing a chant aimed at black French players following their Copa América victory.
The song, which also mentions Kylian Mbappé, was condemned by the French Football Federation, which filed a complaint with FIFA.
Argentina saw its national anthem booed amid a racism storm surrounding Enzo Fernandez
Fernandez filmed himself singing the slogans on the Argentine bus during their Copa America celebrations
Fernandez’s Chelsea teammate Wesley Fofana also reposted the video, calling the rant “blatant racism” before unfollowing Fernandez on Instagram.
Two other Chelsea players – Malo Gusto and Axel Disasi – have also unfollowed Fernandez.
The midfielder subsequently apologised for the video and insisted he was not racist. Chelsea responded by condemning ‘all forms of discriminatory behaviour’ before launching their own investigation.
But the fans at the Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium clearly had not forgotten what happened in recent days and made it clear how they felt about the behaviour of the Argentine players last week.
Fernandez is not playing in the Olympics and is currently enjoying some time away from the pitch following his success at the Copa America.
Last weekend he was put on display at his old club River Plate, but the entire crowd once again started singing the chant aimed at the black French players.
The storm surrounding Fernandez continues to die down, but Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has insisted he is ready to welcome Fernandez back into his squad next week when he returns from holiday.
Enzo Fernandez was paraded by his boyhood club River Plate on Sunday
Footage shared on social media showed the entire stadium chanting the slogan aimed at France’s black players
Speaking in the US, where Chelsea are currently on a pre-season tour, Maresca said: “The player has made a statement, apologized and the club has done the same. I don’t think there is anything more to add, the situation is already clear.”
Asked if there will be any problems in bringing him back into the squad, Maresca added: ‘I don’t think so, honestly. At the end of the day, they are all human beings, I don’t think there is any bad intentions from any of them.
‘If Enzo is back I don’t think we will have any problems, the player has already clarified the situation and the club has done the same. There is nothing to add.
“He’s not a bad person. That can happen, I don’t think there are any problems. I’ve spoken to Enzo, I’ve spoken to a lot of them. The player has made a statement and apologized, that’s clear.”
Reece James also raised the subject with the Chelsea captain saying: ‘Enzo accepted he was wrong and apologised to the club and the team. I have spoken to Enzo and everyone involved but those conversations need to be internal.’
The tournament did not start off optimally for Argentina. They were 1-0 down before half-time, after Bilal El Khannouss had finished off a great team effort by Morocco.
