Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has voiced his frustration, branding Liam Delap’s red card as “very foolish” after the striker’s late dismissal overshadowed Chelsea’s dramatic win.
According to BBC Sport on Thursday, the 22-year-old received two yellow cards in quick succession — first for shoving Yerson Mosquera and then for colliding with Emmanuel Agbadou. As a result, he will be suspended for Saturday’s London derby against Tottenham, with João Pedro already a fitness concern.
Delap, who had just returned from a 10-week hamstring injury, was sent off only 26 minutes after coming on as a second-half substitute.
It marked Chelsea’s sixth red card in nine matches, following Maresca’s own sending-off for celebrating a stoppage-time winner against Liverpool before the international break.
When asked if Delap’s dismissal was justified, Maresca admitted, “Yes — a silly foul. It was something we could have easily avoided.”
He added, “All three goals we conceded tonight were preventable, and the red card was unnecessary as well. After his first booking, I told him several times to calm down. But Liam is the kind of player who, once he’s on the pitch, tends to get caught up in the game and sometimes doesn’t pay attention to instructions.”
Maresca went on to say, “I can understand red cards like the ones against Brighton [Trevoh Chalobah] or Manchester United [Robert Sánchez] — those are tough situations. But the ones against Nottingham Forest and today were completely avoidable.”
“It’s embarrassing when it happens like this — two yellows in less than ten minutes. Both incidents could have been prevented, and it’s simply not acceptable,” he concluded.
