Incoming head coach Liam Rosenior watched from the stands as Chelsea’s 10-man squad lost 2-1 to rivals Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Fulham’s Raul Jimenez and Harry Wilson scored either side of Liam Delap’s equaliser in the second half, but the story was once again Chelsea’s failure to maintain 11 players on the pitch, with Marc Cucurella sent off midway through the first half for denying Wilson a goal scoring opportunity.
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This was the team’s seventh red card of the season, and the third time in the league they had gone down to ten in the first half. Equally alarming for Rosenior, who formally begins work on Thursday morning, will have been the sight of three Chelsea players talking themselves into a booking for their protest.
It had been an equal match until that point. Wilson, fresh after his goal against Liverpool on Sunday, found space to fire a pair of early attempts straight at Robert Sanchez. Chelsea was then inches away from a goal as Enzo Fernandez’s corner hit Andrey Santos and the crossbar.
After 20 minutes, Rosenior saw firsthand his new team’s proclivity to crumble. Cucurella appeared to have the upper hand on Wilson as the two chased a ball over the top, but skillful movement by the Fulham midfielder gave him an advantage that Cucurella could only counter with a pull on the arm that left Wilson falling.
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