Red cards are becoming an extremely regular occurrence in the Premier League nowadays. Some of them have been non-debatable red cards, whereas on the other hand, we have also had red cards that are heavily debatable. On this mid-week set of games, we had a non-debatable red card decision during the Chelsea vs Fulham game in Craven Cottage. Chelsea full-back Marc Cucurella brought down Harry Wilson, who was through on goal. Marc Cucurella was the last man back for Chelsea and decided to take an extreme step in order to prevent Harry Wilson from scoring. The red card decision looked rather obvious because of the fact that Cucurella clearly denied an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. However, the Chelsea players were furious at the decision, showing dissent against the referee.
Marc Cucurella and his challenge
Marc Cucurella’s challenge on Harry Wilson was definitely avoidable. Yes, Wilson was through on goal and Cucurella was the last man back. However, it was just the 22nd minute of the game. There was still plenty of time for Chelsea to mount a comeback. It was not necessarily a last-minute attack that would cost them the game itself. What was further problematic was the fact that some of the Chelsea players acted furiously in disagreement with the decision. Enzo Fernandes and a few other Chelsea players were shown the yellow card for showing dissent against the referee. All in all, it was a complete mess of a start for Chelsea away at Fulham.
Furthermore, Chelsea’s newly appointed manager, Liam Rosenior, was in attendance at Craven Cottage. He watched the mess unfold from the stands. It must have been a disappointing sight for the Englishman. What must have frustrated the Chelsea fans massively is the fact that the game could have gone in their favour if not for Cucurella’s red card. Even if Harry Wilson went on to score for Fulham, Chelsea were more than capable to comeback from a one-goal deficit. It is such a shame that the Blues had to fight it out in a disappointing loss with 10 men.
VAR verdict on Cucurella
The Premier League has provided its say on Marc Cucurella’s challenge. Via X, the Premier League match centre wrote: “The referee’s call of free-kick to Fulham and a red card to Cucurella for denial of an obvious goal-scoring opportunity (DOGSO) was checked and confirmed by VAR – with it deemed that Cucurella committed a holding offence that did not continue into the penalty area.”
It has also been confirmed that Cucurella will carry a one-match suspension. That might leave the Chelsea fan in a worried state because of some difficult fixtures coming up. Especially the all-important Carabao Cup semi-final against London rivals Arsenal. However, the Spaniard will not be missing out the semi-final against Arsenal. As suspensions in the Premier League also carries forward to the FA Cup games, Cucurella will instead be missing out on Chelsea’s FA Cup fixture against Charlton Athletic. It must also be noted that the game against Charlton Athletic will be newly appointed Liam Rosenior’s first game in charge of Chelsea.
Conclusion
Cucurella missing out on the FA Cup tie against Charlton Athletic is not necessarily going to affect the Blues too much. Chelsea’s squad depth is really good and can hold up against Charlton Athletic. However, Liam Rosenior would have loved to have Cucurella in the team to start off his Chelsea tenure. It would have given him a great idea of where the team stands at the moment. Moreover, players have to be educated better on making tackles and challenges that can be risky. Because Cucurella’s unnecessary challenge truly cost Chelsea the game.
As featured on Chelseanews.com