Chelsea’s West London derby against Fulham on Saturday is set to be officiated by a referee who made himself very well known to Blues supporters last season.
A win at Stamford Bridge would see Chelsea temporarily go back to the top of the Premier League, with them being part of the first game of the weekend.
Their dominant win against West Ham and underwhelming draw against Crystal Palace both saw goals against Chelsea be disallowed, and there has been very little for them to complain about when it comes to refereeing decisions.
Chelsea will be hoping that there is nothing to complain about when they face their neighbours on Saturday, however the game will be officiated by someone who had a pretty big part to play in one of their games last season.
Chelsea FC v AFC Bournemouth - Premier League
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Chelsea vs Fulham referee Rob Jones made VAR history last time he refereed the Blues
As per the official Premier League website, Rob Jones will take charge of Chelsea vs Fulham, with the last time he refereed the Blues being against Bournemouth in January 2024.
That game saw the referee make history by being the first to ever go against a red card review at the pitchside monitor, after Marc Cucurella was pulled by his hair by David Brooks.
As per BBC Sport, Chelsea fans were left in ‘disbelief’ that the incident hadn’t seen their opponents reduced to 10 men, and it took a late Reece James free-kick to save a point for the Blues.
Enzo Maresca was not happy with the decision to keep Brooks on the pitch, with the game coming amid a terrible winter run of results for the Blues.
Chelsea FC v AFC Bournemouth - Premier League
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Chelsea’s poor record with Rob Jones as referee
Chelsea have been officiated by Jones on 11 occasions in all competitions, however have only won three of the games he has been in charge of.
This included a run of four consecutive defeats between 2022 and 2023 under a combination of Graham Potter and Frank Lampard as manager.
The Bournemouth match was their only game last season taken charge of by Jones, and everyone will be hoping the official is not the talking point at the conclusion of the next game.