Leeds United manager Jesse Marsch has called on supporters to "be more respectful" and find a way to modify a recent chant about Willy Gnonto that has become popular at Elland Road.
Gnonto has fast become a crowd favourite at the Leeds following his arrival over the summer. The Italian forward has featured in the Whites' last six league matches, scoring his first goal for the club in a 2-2 draw against West Ham last week.
Having a chant is often a hallmark of a player's popularity, but Leeds fans' latest song from the terraces has seen anti-racism group Kickitout release a statement on the issue. Sung to the tune of 'La Bamba', Kickitout and many supporters believe the lyrics contain a racial stereotype regarding the size of his manhood.
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"While we believe the majority of fans singing this chant are not doing so with racist intent, we would stress that racial stereotypes are harmful and offensive, irrespective of the intention to show support for a player," the statement read. "We urge fans to show support with family-friendly language. We will be working closely with Leeds to ensure action is taken.”
And now the Leeds manager has had his say when asked about the issue during his pre-match press conference ahead of their game against Villa.
"I think the point would be that we always want to be respectful," Marsch said. "I think in our sport, it's so important to maintain high levels of respect and I know it within our group, we have that at the highest level.
"I think our fans are great, you know, they show passion. They want the team to be successful. They can be hard on the team sometimes and hard on me about what we're doing and we understand that and I love how much they love Willy.
"I will be walking around my house chanting or like whistling the tune in my head sometimes but is there a way to modify it to be as passionate but be more respectful. That's what I would say."
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