Chelsea were on the wrong end of two significant refereeing decisions during their 1-0 defeat to Sunderland, with the contrasting penalty calls at the Stadium of Light likely to leave plenty of Blues supporters frustrated.
Looking at both incidents through a Chelsea lens, there is a strong argument that Palmer should have been awarded a penalty, while Levi Colwill could also feel aggrieved at being penalised for his involvement in the incident with Brian Brobbey. However, taking off the blue-tinted glasses, both decisions could reasonably be viewed as 50-50 calls, with arguments to support either outcome.
The first incident involved Cole Palmer, who was brought down by Luke O'Nien as he drove towards the Sunderland penalty area. Palmer had beaten the initial challenge before O'Nien came across him, appearing to make contact without getting anywhere near the ball. It was his only involvement of the match from him with the playmaker likely to be impacted and disgruntled from the decision and playing poorly, thereafter.
Referee Jarred Gillett, who is rated as one of worst, waved play on, with VAR subsequently checking the incident and ruling that the contact took place outside the penalty area.
"The referee’s call of no penalty to Chelsea was checked and confirmed by VAR. VAR: “Confirming the on-field decision of play on, any contact with Palmer occurs outside the penalty area.”"
Things became even more frustrating when Sunderland were awarded a penalty at the other end . Brian Brobbey and Levi Colwill were grappling with each other inside the box, with both players wanting to exchange shirts before the opportunity came at the final whistle.
However, the most crucial part persuading the official decision was the tangle below the shirt grappling. Brobbey attempted to turn away from the Chelsea defender, there was contact between their legs, causing the striker to go down.
Gillett pointed to the spot, and VAR upheld the decision. No surprise really, with the game going against the Blues from the kick-off.
Xabi refused to blame the officials, instead placing responsibility firmly on his players for the defeat. Their inability to deal with Sunderland's Dutch striker, Brian Brobbey, was one of the key reasons behind his frustration.
""Yeah, I haven't seen a Cole's one but I've been told that there was a chance that it could be a fair penalty. And the other one, I'm not happy with how we defended that situation. Something that we could avoid, something that we had worked on during the week. And from that action, to give a penalty is not good for us.""
There is certainly an argument that Colwill should have defended the situation better, but the consistency of the two decisions is what will frustrate Chelsea supporters.
On another day, things could have gone Chelsea’s way but that is for the next game with Chelsea unlikely going to lick their wounds over the international break.
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