PFA calls for fresh investigation after Eni Aluko’s claims of racism and bullying

The Professional Footballers’ Association has backed the call for “an open, transparent and independent investigation” into how Eni Aluko’s grievances were handled by the Football Association.

Its intervention came as Chelsea “commended” their forward for “speaking about her experiences” after she accused Mark Sampson, the manager of the England women’s football team, of telling her to make sure her Nigerian relatives did not bring Ebola to a game at Wembley.

Aluko has also described as a “farce” two Football Association inquiries into allegations that Sampson asked a mixed-race player at an England meeting how many times she had been arrested.

Sampson is understood to have denied making the alleged Ebola remark and was cleared of wrongdoing by the FA in relation to the other matter and to further allegations made by Aluko that she had been the victim of bullying and discrimination.

The FA has admitted the mixed-race player was not spoken to during the two investigations it commissioned. It says it has not investigated the alleged Ebola remark, described as a “racist joke” in a letter from the PFA to the governing body, because there was no formal allegation.

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The Anti-racism campaign group Kick It Out has called for the FA “to undertake a comprehensive and independent review of the processes involved” and “take on board any lessons learned, to remedy any deficiencies identified” to “ensure a situation like this will never happen again in order to build trust, confidence and credibility”.

The PFA’s chief executive, Gordon Taylor, offered his continued support to Aluko and said the players’ union would be fully behind a second independent inquiry.

“The Professional Footballers’ Association has been providing support and assistance to our member, Eniola Aluko, from the first moment she made us aware of her experiences of playing for the England team,” Taylor said in a statement to Press Association.

“We were naturally shocked and very concerned when we learned of the serious issues Eni had faced and immediately offered her independent legal advice to pursue her complaints together with any other support she felt would be helpful in the circumstances.

“This led to the instruction of a leading employment and discrimination QC who provided ongoing advice to Eni and represented her in respect of her complaints against the Football Association.

“Her complaints were pursued vigorously and this led to the Football Association entering into discussions with Eni and her advisers regarding a financial settlement which she was ultimately prepared to accept.

“Understandably, we share Eni’s concerns regarding what has occurred and would fully support an open, transparent and independent investigation into her experiences and any other incidents which any of her team-mates may also wish to raise.

“We feel that this is very important to ensure that these serious issues are properly dealt with and to also ensure that an appropriate process is put in place to give any other players the confidence to raise any similar issues.

“Finally, we continue to provide support for Eni and will do so for any other member who requires our assistance in relation to this matter.”

Aluko signed for Chelsea in December 2012 and the club said in a statement on Tuesday: “We commend Eni for coming forward and speaking about her experiences. Chelsea football club finds any and all forms of discrimination abhorrent and it is imperative that players are supported when coming forward to speak about these issues.”

There were messages of support from elsewhere for Aluko. Lianne Sanderson, who played with Aluko for England, tweeted: “I am so proud of one of my best friends @EniAlu I have stood with you through this and I will continue to do so. Now people hopefully see!”

Sanderson was named as a key witness in Aluko’s complaint that she had been bullied and discriminated against. The initial findings were delivered to Aluko before the inquiry had spoken to Sanderson. The official explanation from the FA is that it was handled in that order because of timings and logistics, as well as the PFA applying pressure for it to be a quick process. The FA says Sanderson’s evidence played a part later on for the final internal report.