Millwall Football Club are facing a probe from the FA (Football Association) after fans aimed homophobic chants at Ben Chilwell.
The incident occurred during Millwall’s controversial 3-1 FA Cup fifth-round defeat at Selhurst Park to Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Millwall supporters sang ‘Chelsea rent boy’ at Chilwell, with the Englishman currently on loan at Palace from the west London club.
A ‘rent boy’ is slang for a young male prostitute. The chant has long been aimed at Chelsea players from various opposition teams over the years.
Fans of Millwall were also heard chanting ‘let him die’ at Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta after the Frenchman was stretchered off following a kick to the head from goalkeeper Liam Roberts and taken to hospital.
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It is reported that the chants aimed at Mateta do not breach the FA’s regulations, though, meaning Millwall are likely to escape punishment for that specific song.
The incident involving Mateta was a huge talking point after Palace’s win over Millwall as both managers shared their thoughts following the match.
‘He is conscious and he is in hospital,’ Palace head coach Oliver Glasner said about Mateta. ‘His ear looks terrible. It’s a very serious injury so we hope all the best for him.
‘We are not really happy, we can’t be really happy. Of course, it’s a great win and into the quarter-finals but when you lose a player, especially with a foul like this, you have two different feelings in your stomach.
‘Honestly, I didn’t want to see it, I just watched it and it is terrible. I’m sure the goalkeeper didn’t want to injure JP in this situation, no player wants this.
‘But if you got to the ball with this with this intensity, with the foot at that height, you can’t do it because it’s so dangerous and we all have responsibilities for our health.
‘I don’t want to blame him but it is a terrible foul. I didn’t see it like it was in the game, it was so quick, I could see the keeper had a lot of intensity, but he touched the ball first. But I could see it now in slow motion and it’s worse.’
Millwall head coach Alex Neil added: ‘I think the ball went in behind, [goalkeeper] Liam Roberts has come out which he has done in many games he’s played.
‘He’s misjudged it and caught the lad. He has mistimed it, he got sent off which at that stage made the game doubly difficult for us.
‘I don’t think it is meant. I don’t think there is any intent, why would there be intent? We don’t want the lad to be injured. We wish him well and hope he is back on the pitch soon. It was a mistiming, he was sent off, he is disappointed and will hope Mateta is fine, which we all do.’
