Chelsea were leading rivals Fulham at halftime 1-0 on Matchday 3 of the 2025/26 Premier League season after a goal in the ninth minute of stoppage time by new striker Joao Pedro, assisted by defensive midfielder Enzo Fernandez.
But the big storyline at the halfway mark of this matchup wasn’t positive, and it wasn’t even about the goal. It was about one of the players involved in the goal, but it was far from praiseworthy.
Enzo, as captured by Chelsea’s Daily Mail reporter Kieran Gill, could be seen yelling at fans and even the bench as he come off the pitch at the half, even offering his captain’s armband to fitness coach Marcos Alvarez.
Chelsea were warming up youngster Andrey Santos, fresh off a Ligue 1 Player of the Season-caliber campaign at Strasbourg in 2024/25, as a potential substitute for the Argentinian World Cup hero.
Chelsea fans are not happy
It was far from a heroic first half from Enzo, whose assist obfuscated what can only be described as the opposite of a captain’s performance in the middle of the park. And Chelsea fans were letting him have an earful on social media.
One fan said: “I love Enzo Fernandez but I don’t care about the assist and he has had an absolute stinker today. Hall of shame since the season started.”
Another chimed in: “Enzo Fernandez is still the biggest disease on this club, niceeeee.”
And finally there was this: “One thing I will never understand are the people that will just bare face lie that Enzo Fernandez is a good player. Like we can’t be watching the same sport.”
There were other, more NSFW reactions to the first half from Enzo (especially from Arsenal fans), as well as more measured takes from Chelsea supporters that aren’t simply calling Fernandez an overrated fraud.
When Enzo joined Chelsea in the middle of the 2022/23 season from Benfica after winning the World Cup, he had a whopping price tag well over 100 million euros on his head and a weight of expectations.
Until last season, he unequivocally failed to live up to them, but he immediately improved with Enzo Maresca at the helm, forming the best double-pivot in the Premier League alongside Moises Caicedo.
But with youngsters Santos and Dario Essugo joining the club this summer, Enzo has less margin for error, and more performances like this one, especially if he has this kind of attitude as a supposed leader, will be punished accordingly.
Maybe he’s feeling the heat with Santos around after the even better season the youngster had in France in the 2024/25 campaign, but he needs to channel this energy elsewhere and improve. Quickly.
Joe Soriano is the editor of The Trivela Effect and a FanSided Hall of Famer who has covered world football since 2011. He’s led top digital communities like The Real Champs (Real Madrid) and has contributed to sites covering Tottenham, Liverpool, Juventus, and Schalke. Joe’s work has appeared in ESPN, Bleacher Report, and Sports Illustrated. He also helped manage NFL Spin Zone and Daily DDT, covering the NFL and pro wrestling, respectively.