Chelsea to write to fans with punishment threat over offensive chant
metro.co.uk · 11 hours ago
Chelsea fans have been asked not to sing a controversial song (Picture: Getty Images) Chelsea plan to send a message to fans and threaten them with bans over an offensive chant heard during Monday’s win at Fulham. The Blues started the season with a 3-2 victory in the west London derby, with goals from the impressive front three of Joao Pedro, Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer. The club will respond to the behaviour of some of their fans, though, after a sectarian chant was heard from the away supporters. Known as the ‘Flute for 50 pence song’, the chant includes the line ‘F*** the Pope and the IRA’. Exclusive Premier League previews Get ahead of the start of the season with our weekly football newsletter. Sign up now for free. The Daily Mail reports that Chelsea will email all fans who bought a ticket for the game and ask them not to sing the song at future games. The club will also point out that a ban from attending matches is a possibility for anyone who does chant the chant. In 2021, Chelsea released a statement condemning the actions of a fan who aimed sectarian abuse at Aston Villa’s John McGinn. Scotland international John McGinn was targeted by a Chelsea fan in 2021 (Picture: Getty Images) ‘We are aware of a video circulating on social media showing an individual using abusive language of a sectarian nature in the crowd at Stamford Bridge on Saturday,’ Chelsea said. ‘Chelsea Football Club finds all forms of discriminatory behaviour totally unacceptable and we condemn the language used. ‘The club is working to identify the person involved and will take the strongest possible action against them.’ Xabi Alonso got off to a winning start as Chelsea manager (Picture: EPA) On the field, it was a positive start to Xabi Alonso’s stint in charge of the Blues, although with some concerns at the back, especially goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. ‘We know how tough it is to win any Premier League game, and any away Premier League game,’ said Alonso. ‘We prepared for an intense game, and I feel it was a very professional, solid performance, showing maturity and managing the difficult moments. ‘We got the lead quite early, had chances to score the second one, but after the equaliser we were through ten minutes when we didn’t choose the right moments to press and the movements. ‘We corrected this well and in the second half, we felt comfortable without the ball, controlling the game. It was a performance to build for the future. There are things to improve for sure, but it was a good first day.’ He added: ‘[It’s important] to manage in difficult moments, not to lose this emotional control. We know the Premier League is fantastic because sometimes the games are out of your hands. ‘You don’t control them, so the players on the pitch need to know how to manage it – it’s as important as the tactics being right. It’s a process but today we went through good moments on that and we need to carry on that.’ Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
