Enzo Fernandez served the second of his two-game ban as Chelsea were beaten by Man City at Stamford Bridge, a third consecutive Premier League defeat for Liam Rosenior and his men.
Fernandez has been banned by Chelsea after a joint decision among Rosenior and the club’s hierarchy, following his outrageous flirting with Real Madrid during the break. Fernandez watched on Sunday.
With Chelsea’s only World Cup winner in the stands, Rosenior’s men gave a good account of themselves in the first half and were unlucky not to be winning. Marc Cucurella’s goal was offside by a few inches.
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Malo Gusto and Jeremy Doku
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But City went up a gear in the second half, and scored goals through Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guehi and Jeremy Doku. Chelsea’s hopes of a top-five finish are in tatters after Liverpool beat Fulham on Saturday.
Does Liam Rosenior regret Enzo Fernandez ban?
Speaking ahead of the game, John Terry questioned the decision to ban Fernandez and felt Chelsea needed the Argentine if they were to get anything out of the game against Pep Guardiola’s side.
It turned out to be the case. Chelsea simply could not handle City in the second half, with individual errors and the Blues’ inability to defend from crosses too much to handle. Would Fernandez have helped?
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Defensively, possibly not. From a leadership point of view, almost certainly. After the 3-0 defeat, Rosenior was asked if Chelsea might have got a better result had Fernandez played, and if he regretted the ban.
“Possibly. Possibly, in hindsight, you see 20-20 in hindsight,” Rosenior said. “Enzo’s a top player, and honestly, he’s a top character, and I’m looking forward to having him back next week.
“Sometimes you make decisions not based on the short-term, but on what you want to see long-term. It was a long-term decision that the club aligned on, to make sure values and culture is in the right place.
“But Enzo has had the conversations he’s needed to have. He’s been fantastic in the last few days in supporting myself and the team, and I can’t wait to have him back in the squad,” Rosenior continued.
Chelsea’s attacking play wasn’t the issue; it’s the other end
Rosenior has now managed 21 games, and Chelsea have kept four clean sheets in that time. They cannot defend from crosses well enough, conceding 12 times this term, the fifth-most in the Premier League.
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Fofana and Hato couldn't stop City.
Had Fernandez been playing, there might have been a few more chances created. Of course, that can change the dynamic of a game. If the Blues had gone 1-0 up, they could have sacrificed an attacker.
But they almost did that, through Cucurella. Can Fernandez help Chelsea stop conceding from crosses? Can he shore up the defence? That’s not his department. City turned it on and Chelsea had no answer.
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