Racist Chelsea fans must be locked up, says victim

The Parisian revealed he hid the incident from his wife and children but has spoken out after finding out it had been filmed by fellow commuters

The Paris resident racially abused by Chelsea fans on a metro ahead of their Champions League encounter with Paris Saint-Germain has urged authorities to punish the perpetrators.

Souleymane S. was denied entrance to a metro carriage and subjected to racist chants at the Richelieu-Drouot metro station by a number of Blues supporters and he has made it clear he will file charges against the people involved.

"I did not know that the incident was being filmed. The fact that people are now talking about it has given me the courage to complain to the police. These people, these English fans, must be located, punished and locked up for what they did. This should not go unpunished," Souleymane told Le Parisien.

"I wanted to get into the carriage, but a group of English fans blocked me and pushed me away. I lost my phone in the scramble. They were shouting at me in English, but I didn't really understand them because I don't speak English.

"But I realised they were Chelsea fans and that it was connected to the PSG game. I also understood they were attacking me because of the colour of my skin. I was not really surprised by it. I live with racism, although it was the first time it happened in the metro.

"I stayed in front of those fans for a long time. Someone told me that I had been brave to resist them. I think it all lasted for six or seven minutes. At some point, the RATP (public transport operator) intervened, but only to ensure there would not be any fighting and that the metro could run as scheduled. Nobody defended me, but what could they have done.

"I just waited for the next metro to arrive. I did not talk about it with my wife and children. Should I tell them that their dad was being pushed and shoved in the subway because he is black. This is useless..."

Chelsea have strongly condemned Tuesday's events and have asked any witnesses to get in touch with the club in order to track down and punish the fans involved.