Moises Caicedo was at the heart and centre of Chelsea’s 4-3 win against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
It was Moises Caicedo who won Chelsea‘s first penalty of the game, which Cole Palmer converted to make the score 2-2 at the time.
However, he could have easily been sent off before that after a bad tackle on Pape Matar Sarr.
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has now discussed whether the midfielder should have seen red on the day. Before the game, Jason Cundy predicted that Caicedo would start at right-back with Wesley Fofana out injured, and that is exactly where Enzo Maresca put him at first.
Moises Caicedo of Chelsea in action during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur FC and Chelsea FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Dec...
Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images
Dermot Gallagher agrees with Anthony Taylor’s decision in Tottenham vs Chelsea
In the end, neither Anthony Taylor nor the VAR thought that Caicedo’s tackle warranted a red card.
And Gallagher, speaking on Sky Sports, said he agreed with the decision because the lack of intensity in the 23-year-old’s challenge.
“I think it’s a yellow card,” the former Premier League referee said. “I can understand why Jamie Carragher thinks it’s a red. I think he goes down, puts his foot into the ground and doesn’t go through it — that’s what saves him. If he catches him half-way up the shin, he’s going to get a red card.
“What everybody’s looking for now is intensity. Has he got it, has he got the momentum, has he gone through it? His boot comes down on the pitch, rather than his shin. That’s what saves him.”
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Discipline has been a bit of a problem for this Chelsea squad this season. 15 games in, and Maresca’s men have the most yellow cards in the Premier League.
It is something that the Chelsea manager needs to get his players to work on, especially if they are planning on challenging for the title.
Chelsea’s discipline record this season Total
Yellow cards 50
Red cards 0
Stephen Warnock thought Moises Caicedo was fortunate
While Gallagher thought Caicedo’s challenge was not a red card offence, former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock thinks that the Ecuador international got away with one.
In response to Gallagher’s comments, he said: “When you’re coming together like that, the chances of breaking your leg are very high. It’s such a dangerous challenge. He’s lucky there.”
Losing Caicedo to a straight red card and three-match ban would have been a huge blow for Chelsea.
He has been one of their best players this season and is one reason why the Blues are doing so well right now.
Tim Sherwood recently praised Caicedo, describing the former Brighton & Hove Albion man as “brilliant”. Having to take on Brentford’s in-form attack right now without Caicedo is not something Maresca would have wanted.
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