Liam Rosenior has revealed that Chelsea held a squad meeting this week to help the team process the racist abuse directed at defender Wesley Fofana.
‘We Stand with Wes’ – Rosenior Reveals Chelsea’s Strong Response to Fofana Abuse
The French centre-back received a torrent of vile messages on Instagram following his red card in the 1-1 draw with Burnley last Saturday.
Fofana shared screenshots of the abuse, writing in a follow-up post: “2026 and it is still the same thing. These people are never punished.”
Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s trip to Arsenal, Rosenior confirmed that the club acted quickly to support the 25-year-old.
The Blues boss explained that Dr Michael Bennett—the club’s head of performance wellbeing—met with the players on Friday to discuss the incident.
“The players have incredible support both on and off the pitch,” Rosenior said.
“They had a meeting with Doctor Michael Bennett today about his involvement and how he can help with anything off the pitch.”
“It was obviously a tough day for Wes. First, what happened in the game, and then the fall-out—the racist abuse he got online.
Wes is a tough guy, a good guy.”
Fofana’s dismissal marked Chelsea’s sixth red card in the Premier League this season.
Zian Flemming’s late equaliser for Burnley compounded the disappointment for the west London side, who have now dropped points in back-to-back home games against promoted teams.
Burnley midfielder Hannibal Mejbri also suffered similar abuse after the match, prompting strong statements from both clubs.
Chelsea released a statement calling the abuse “abhorrent” and vowing to work with authorities to identify the perpetrators.
The Premier League also threw its weight behind the players, insisting that “racism has no place in our game.”
Rosenior admitted that while he would prefer players to ignore social media, the reality is different.
“In a perfect world, players don’t take notice of what’s on social media, but in reality they do because they are human beings,” he said.
“It is very easy to write whatever you want with no consequences when you are on social media. I hope the players take in the fact that it’s just noise.”
Fofana will miss Sunday’s clash with league leaders Arsenal due to suspension, but Rosenior confirmed the defender has trained well this week and is in the right frame of mind.
