"Best player on the pitch" - Jamie Carragher defends Chelsea star despite loss against Fulham
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has jumped to Chelsea forward Joao Felix's defence after his sending off during his team's 2-1 Premier League away defeat against Fulham on Thursday (January 12).
Chelsea continued their poor run of form as the club slumped to their seventh loss of the ongoing 2022-23 Premier League season at Craven Cottage. Willian and Carlos Vinicius scored on either side of Kalidou Koulibaly's equalizer to help the hosts climb up to sixth in the table.
Felix, who was representing the Blues for the first time against Fulham, was shown a red card for a tackle on Kenny Tete in the 58th minute.
Taking to Twitter, Carragher voiced his support for Felix. He wrote:
"Felix & Chelsea can't complain with the red card, but up until that point he'd been the best player on the pitch!"
Felix & Chelsea can’t complain with the red card, but up until that point he’d been the best player on the pitch!
A versatile attacker blessed with flair and directness, the Portuguese arrived from Atletico Madrid for a loan fee of £11 million earlier this week. Blues boss Graham Potter opted to snap him up in the winter transfer window in light of his team's troubles of finding the back of the net.
During his chaotic Chelsea debut, he registered five shots, completed 16 passes and two dribbles, won six duels, and created a big chance.
However, Felix is now set to miss the west London outfit's upcoming three games against Crystal Palace, Liverpool, and Fulham respectively. He will be available for selection during the west London outfit's Premier League trip to West Ham United on Saturday (February 11).
Prior to joining the Blues, he scored five goals and laid out three assists in 20 appearances across all competitions for Atletico this campaign.
During his three-game suspension Joao Felix will cost Chelsea around $2m in wages and loan fee. 😬 https://t.co/ZlEBMpW1yr
Chelsea manager Graham Potter comments on Joao Felix's disastrous first start
Speaking at a post-match press conference, Graham Potter asserted that Joao Felix showed signs of promise despite being sent off on his Premier League debut for Chelsea on Thursday night. He said:
"All of them will be learning moments. Joao is a young player, a top player, you could see the quality he brought to the game. I didn't see any malice in the challenge at all. It was a little bit high of course but the referee then has a decision to make. He'll learn from it."
Defending the Benfica academy graduate, Potter continued:
"I don't think it was an emotional one from Joao, it didn't feel that to me. It was a miss-control and then just a football action that can happen with the speed of the Premier League and a game of football at this level. He didn't go into hurt anybody, he didn't lose his head, it just was what it was. Sometimes these things happen."