Enzo Maresca: ‘Caicedo deserved red but Hincapie should have been sent off as well’

Chelsea went down to 10 men in the 38th minute after Moisés Caicedo was dismissed for serious foul play on Mikel Merino. The Ecuadorian midfielder had first been booked by referee Anthony Taylor, but VAR official John Brooks advised a review that led to the caution being upgraded to a red.

Down to 10 men, Chelsea still took the lead through Trevoh Chalobah in the 48th minute, but Merino leveled the score shortly before the hour.

After the match, Enzo Maresca said his own midfielder Moises Caicedo deserved to be sent off. However, the Italian coach also raised doubts about the consistency of Premier League refereeing, insisting that Piero Hincapie should had been sent off as well.

Hincapie and Chalobah clashed while contesting a header, with the Ecuadorian defender raising his arm and striking the 25-year-old under the eye with his elbow. Chalobah received treatment on the pitch immediately, with a noticeable bruise forming on his cheekbone. Referee Anthony Taylor booked Hincapie, with VAR reviewing the challenge.

Chelsea captain Reece James insisted that there should have been “one more red card,” with Maresca adding: “I agree with Reece. As managers, we struggle to understand why incidents are judged differently. Chalobah has a black eye, yet the decision was handled differently.”

“Moises was a red card. But so was Rodrigo Bentancur when we played Spurs. That is why we struggle to understand.

“Again, 11-11, I think we were a better team than them. We managed the game, we controlled the game, we created chances. Then the red card changed the dynamic a little bit, but even with that, I think the way the players dealt with that has been outstanding”.

Maresca revealed Taylor’s response after he asked why Hincapie had not been shown a red card for fouling Chalobah, with the defender instead being booked.

“The Trevoh one, I asked the referee. He said to me that it was not an elbow. This is what they said”.

With the 1-1 draw, Arsenal missed the chance to extend their lead over Manchester City to seven points in the Premier League standings. After 13 matches, they sit on 30 points, five ahead of the Citizens, while Chelsea are third with 24 points.