Liverpool star defends Enzo Fernandez and says Argentina is not a 'racist country'

Alexis Mac Allister has defended Argentina teammate Enzo Fernandez over the offensive chant which has led to racism accusations from the French Football Federation and a number of fans across the globe.

Fernandez has already apologised publicly and privately after livestreaming a video of himself and a large number of the Argentinian players celebrating their Copa America triumph by singing a transphobic, discriminatory chant about the France squad they beat in the 2022 World Cup final.

Liverpool midfielder Mac Allister has moved to defend Fernandez, who was by no means the only player seen singing the chant, by insisting Europe's perception of racism is softer than in South America.

"You have to be careful with what you say or do," Mac Allister told Urbana Play. "Especially in Europe where they are much more sensitive than here. The reality is that we are not a racist country; we are not used to talking about racism so much.

"Enzo has already apologised and explained what happened. I don't think there's much more to say. We know Enzo, we know he would never do it with bad intentions, he's not that guy, he's not racist."

Chelsea have opened an investigation into Fernandez's conduct but the midfielder's actions stand to create a huge issue for the Blues after teammates Wesley Fofana and David Datro Fofana publicly called out Fernandez's actions.

Fofana, a French international, described the video as "uninhibited racism", before Ivorian Fofana insisted "these acts have no place in football or anywhere else".

Reports suggest there has been a rift in the Chelsea dressing room over the response to the issue, with a number of the team's black players unfollowing Fernandez on social media.

Chelsea's first ever black player, Paul Canoville, has offered to aid any "restorative process" at the club on behalf of his foundation.

Fofana's decision to go public with his disappointment left another Argentina international, Atletico Madrid's Rodrigo de Paul, unimpressed.

"I understand that people who have suffered from racism might not like it, but I think if any of Enzo's teammates feel offended, the way is to call him, not post it on social media," he told OLGA.

"I think there's malice in this; they're trying to make it something it's not. It's very strange, like kicking someone when they're down. Unfollowing him seems pointless to me. You can call him and say: 'This isn't okay, why don't you post a message apologising?', and the issue ends there."

Meanwhile, Fernandez's father has launched his own defence of the Chelsea midfielder.

"I know who my son is and he is not like that!" Raul Fernandez explained to Deportes Argentos. "He's not racist, never!

"It's hard for a European to understand our football culture like chants and celebrations. He recorded that live video at an inopportune moment. It was bad, he didn't even realise what he was singing.

"In 2014, when Germany beat us, they imitated the way gauchos walked and treated us like idiots. In 2018, France was criticising [Lionel] Messi because of his height. We never came out and said that we were being discriminated against."

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