The FA have ended their investigation into Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho over a social media post involving teammate Andre Onana, opting not to punish the Argentina international.
Garnacho landed himself in hot water when he posted an image celebrating Onana’s penalty save in last month’s 1-0 win over Kobenhavn – a huge moment for a goalkeeper who has struggled since his arrival in England.
The image of Onana was accompanied by two gorilla emojis, sparking plenty of comments accusing Garnacho of being racist towards his teammate.
Garnacho quickly deleted the post and both Onana and manager Erik ten Hag came out publicly to show support and insist they did not believe the young winger meant any harm with his post.
Nevertheless, the FA spoke with Garnacho to determine his intentions and have now decided to let the 19-year-old off with a warning.
“We have concluded an investigation in relation to a recent post on Alejandro Garnacho’s social media,” a statement read.
“We sought the player’s observations as part of our investigation, and he explained that the use of two gorilla emojis was intended to highlight the strength and power of his teammates – specifically Andre Onana and Harry Maguire – following the pivotal roles that they played in Manchester United‘s win over FC Kobenhavn.
“We are satisfied with Alejandro Garnacho’s explanation and the context it provides, so we will not be issuing disciplinary proceedings on this occasion.
“However, we have reminded the player of his responsibilities around social media posts and the use of emojis in particular which can be interpreted in different ways.
“We also intend to liaise with Kick It Out and the PFA to discuss other potential issues around the use of emojis and similar forms of messaging, and education that can be provided about them.”
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