Chelsea have sent Kenedy home from their pre-season Asian tour following comments made by the Brazilian winger on social media.
He shared videos on Instagram, one with the a caption that roughly translates to “f***ing China” and another of a sleeping security guard with a translated phrase “Wake up, China. You idiot.”
The posts were quickly deleted and Kenedy wrote a temporary apology on Instagram, but the damage had already been done.
Chelsea then apologised, saying “We were surprised and disappointed that one day prior to the match, one of our young players, Kenedy, posted messages on his social media account that caused great offence and hurt the feelings of the people of China.
“Unfortunately, even though he quickly deleted the messages and apologised, and the club also apologised via our Chinese social media channels, the damage had already been done.
“Kenedy’s actions were a mistake that he will learn greatly from. His behaviour does not represent the entire team and does not align with the club’s high expectations and strict requirements of its young players. He has been strongly reprimanded and disciplined.
“Everyone at Chelsea Football Club has the utmost respect and admiration for China and loves our Chinese fans. It is because of this that the negative impact we have seen over the last two days has left us shocked and saddened.”
The 21-year-old will play no further role during pre-season, but his future at the club doesn’t appear to be in doubt. Time is a great healer.