Feb 27, 2026, 03:27 PM
Open Extended Reactions
Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior said Wesley Fofana is a "tough guy" and is "absolutely fine" after being racially abused following Saturday's draw with Burnley.
The defender shared messages he had received online in the hours after his red card during the 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge, which the UK Football Policing Unit said it was investigating along with other incidents reported during the last seven days.
Burnley's Hannibal Mejbri also posted images of abuse he had received on Saturday then the following day Wolves striker Tolu Arokodare and Sunderland winger Romaine Mundle were also targeted.
The clubs of all four players condemned the abuse, as did the Premier League.
Rosenior had spoken at length the previous day about the problem of racism in football after Real Madrid's Vinícius Júnior alleged he was racially abused during a Champions League game against Benfica, and ahead of Sunday's Premier League meeting with Arsenal at the Emirates he was faced with the topic again.
Wesley Fofana and Hannibal Mejbri were subjected to racist abuse following Chelsea's draw with Burnley. Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images
"It was a tough day for Wes, firstly what happened in the game, secondly the fallout and racist abuse that he got online," he said.
"Wes is a tough guy, he's a good guy. But it's amazing, we spoke about racism last week. It affects you. It shouldn't exist, whether it's online, verbal, in person. It's something we have to try out best to eradicate from life. But Wes is absolutely fine, he trained well this week."
Chelsea reported a a pre-tax loss of £355 million ($477.1m) on Thursday for the year 2024-25, a record for an English club and second only in Europe to Barcelona's £484m loss in 2021.
Rosenior said he does not expect the figures, which could potentially trigger a UEFA fine if the governing body deems them to be non-compliant with their regulations, will impact his work with the squad or in the transfer market.
"My job is to focus on the team, to try and make the squad as strong as possible to eventually win things," he said. "That's why I'm here.
"I will have conversations with the ownership and the guys above me but it's something that's not at the forefront of my mind. I just want make sure on the pitch we're as successful as possible."