Enzo Fernández’s ignition of culture wars needs cultured response

Neil Barnett on what needs doing to maintain the joy of football after the Argentina squad's latest scar on their successes

What have English football hierarchies learned since the South American Luis Suárez repeatedly abused Patrice Evra, the African-born Frenchman, with taunts of: “Negro, negro, negro…” during a Liverpool-Manchester United match over 12 years ago?

What response should Enzo Fernández expect from his club, team-mates, the FA, and the public on his return to Chelsea following singing the song, abusive to French African-born players, with the celebrating Argentine Copa America winners last week?

After he was banned for eight matches, Liverpool players all wore Suárez shirts next game, in which to warm up, in defence of their team-mate.

I was shocked when my friend Gus Poyet came out in defence of his Uruguayan compatriot Suárez, explaining it was a completely different culture in their country and wasn’t racist in the way it is recognised as being here in the UK, and that in Spanish the word for black is ‘negro’ and not offensive as the word had become in English.

Well, let’s get one thing straight. On both occasions, this was racist. It’s not the same as picking on someone, say, with red hair, when people of colour have been enslaved, legally made second class citizens, and economically and socially kept out of the better jobs and life for centuries.

(Although I still remember, when John Major’s Conservative party won the 1992 General Election preventing Labour’s Neil Kinnock from becoming prime minister, being told that still no redhead had ever been prime minister!!)

The injustice supported by Liverpool players became clear to some of them over time so that in 2019 their legendary defender Jamie Carragher apologised publicly to Evra.

This was the same year that Evra made homophobic comments about Paris Saint-Germain players on Snapchat, calling them all ‘faggots’ after they lost to his old club Manchester United, and for which in 2023 he was fined by the French courts.

To his credit, at least some credit, Evra apologised. As has Fernández.

The trouble is that the original act unleashes a lot of righteous and understandable anger. So it’s been that Chelsea defender and team-mate Wes Fofana, born in Marseille to a French mother and Ivorian father, posted the Argentines’ singing on his social media with the caption, translated from his French: ‘Football in 2024. Unabashed racism’.

On both sides of the divide there have been responses trying to reach out for some area of understanding. The beautiful statement of bewilderment from Nicolas Jackson, a picture of Fernández squatting face to face with a gorgeous toddler black child, both making the same gestures, and Jackson put two pleading faced emojis above them, and underneath a white fist meeting a black fist with a heart above the join, has been the best. Clearly, he was having heartache processing what the hell was going on.

Then, in careful support of Fernández from Argentina, came this from Liverpool’s Alex Mac Callister, who was not seen on the video singing. “You have to be careful with what you say or do. 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.”

And from France, from the 2022 World Cup captain when the song was born by Argentina supporters, Hugo Lloris said: “They are the face of football right now, in South America, in the world. They deserve a lot of credit for what they have done on the field for the last four or five years. It doesn’t matter if you are in a moment of euphoria because you have won an important trophy. It demands even more responsibility when you are a winner. You don’t want to hear or see this kind of thing in football. We all stand against discrimination and racism. I just think and hope it is a mistake. We all make mistakes sometimes and hopefully they will learn from it. But when you win, you are an example for others, especially kids. It was a proper attack about the French people, especially for the French people who have some African origin and family.”

One of the most wonderful people I know is Paul Canoville, the first Chelsea black player, who suffered savage abuse from white racists who, at the time, were Chelsea supporters. And one thing I have learned from him, and other black players of that era who underwent similar abuse, is that there is no reasoning or judgement possible as to whether the abused carry scars. Just as there is no reasoning or judgement possible after an accident or act of violence as to whether you carry physical scars. You’re lucky, as Paul has become, or you’re unlucky and need sympathy, understanding.

So I find it shocking when the Argentine undersecretary for sport, Julio Garro, is forced to resign for saying that captain Lionel Messi, who was not on the bus when the song was sung, and the federation president should apologise for the song being sung. The president of the country, Javier Milei, responded on X: ‘The President’s Office reports that no government can tell what to comment, what to think or what to do to the Argentina National Team, World Champion and Two-time American Champion, or to any other citizen. For this reason, Julio Garro ceases to be Undersecretary of Sports of the Nation.’

And the vice-president Victoria Vallarruel weighed in through social media: ‘No country with a colonial history is going to put us down for a song sung on a field nor for speaking a truth that nobody wants to admit. Enough of pretending to be offended, hypocrites. Enzo I am with you, Messi thanks for everything! Argentines always keep your heads high! Long live Argentina! We never forced our way of life on anyone, nor will we tolerate that someone tries to do the same to us.’

Firstly, Victoria, I will suffer the ‘colonial history’ taunt because of the Falklands/Malvinas issue, but for the rest your missing of the point spotlights your appalling ignorance. The origin of the complaints come from black French footballers. Yes, the French Federation has complained to Fifa, but over your players’ racist abuse of their black players.

So, on this, I’m with Demba Ba, the former Chelsea and Senegal player, whose X response was: ‘Argentina, land of asylum for former Nazis on the run. From 1945, Perón hosted war criminals. And it surprises you …’ I’d vote for him as president!

Unfortunately, there is a history of tasteless conduct by this set of Argentina players, their World Cup quarter-final penalty shoot-out win over the Netherlands prefacing taunting celebrations that even Messi was central to.

But there is an on-going racist and homophobic set of issues in Europe of course. The inexcusable Spanish victimising of Vinicius Jr, the pathetic self-righteousness of Valencia as a club claiming only the monkey chants by three supporters was racist against him, the booing from virtually the whole stadium wasn’t, the failure of Spanish authorities to take on the fight against racism in order to make a difference is a scar on the continent. Italy has been no better, with its victimising of Mario Balotelli and Moise Kean down the years.

Anyone who, like me, has followed their team round Europe, has heard constant racist abuse in various countries. And recently France has had to deal with players refusing to support LGBT+ campaigns, tearing supporting colours off their team shirts, rather than wearing them. To make matters more complicated, these have often been African born players with strong religious beliefs.

In England, despite the campaigns and liberal words and widespread condemnation of the Argentine squad singing the song, Ruud Gullit in 1997 lifting the FA Cup remains the only manager of colour to have won a major trophy. There is still not equality of opportunity.

So, I come back to my original question. What have English football hierarchies learned since the South American Luis Suárez repeatedly abused Patrice Evra, the African-born Frenchman, with taunts of: “Negro, negro, negro…” during a Liverpool-Manchester United match over 12 years ago?

And to answer it, I want to go back further. I started working inside a football club in 1986. One of the things I soon became shocked by, as a middle-class, university educated guy, was that when young players of potential signed their first serious professional contract, when they first were getting their hands on money that most people of their age weren’t, they didn’t leave the room and get ushered into another where someone from the club would sit them down and give them financial advice. The clubs didn’t think it their responsibility, didn’t care, just wanted the talent tied down.

This was the kind of gap in corporate conduct which gave the opening to agents. Football club conduct gave birth to the need for agents, and too many agents since have been bad for the game. Blame the clubs.

In the same vein, when you start importing players from across the globe, you can’t expect them just to understand and take on your culture. They need introducing to it. Yes, nowadays players are offered security, and people to look after their bill payments and other responsibilities, all at ludicrous cost.

But who prepares them for British culture which is arguably more diverse and more liberal than a lot of the countries they are coming from? What should Enzo Fernández know? In July 2022, aged 21, he left Buenos Aries to join Benfica for a transfer fee of €10m. In December he won the World Cup. In January 2023, aged 22 and with 10 caps only for Argentina, he joined Chelsea for a transfer fee of €121m.

Now he’s 23 with two children, a man of the world who has just won Copa America, but his time at Chelsea is associated with lack of success. Are his feet on the ground? Is he a man of the world? After 18 months his English isn’t yet good enough for him to conduct an English language interview. Are his feet on the English ground?

From Suárez to Fernández, overseas players may be helped to assimilate practically, for football safe passage purposes, but not culturally. And every so often that leads to unsafe passages. Questionable conduct.

Enzo was badly out of order, he should have known better, but maybe he wasn’t helped enough to take on his new culture. Everyone needs to look at themselves as a result.