Leicester and Chelsea have just kicked off the second half at the King Power with the Blues 1-0 up, but things should be looking even better.
Not only did the Blues miss some big chances, they also should be facing ten men. With Leicester really struggling in the first 30 minutes, Wilfred Ndidi scissor tackled Chelsea key man Cole Palmer. It wasn’t an accident, it was pure spite, caused by the fact that the midfielder was getting played around so easily.
He somehow got away with a yellow. You’ll not see a more clear red all weekend.
6 Chelsea players surrounded the ref – but it could have been ten. Moments later, Joao Felix was taken out by another hard tackle, showing how quickly a lack of enforcement of the rules leads to more dangerous situations.
The worst part is that it worked – it got the crowd going and Leicester were far better after it.
You can see the tackle in the clips embedded here:
“He lost his rag, he should be sent off.”
Joe Cole believes Wilfred Ndidi is lucky to be on the pitch after his challenge on Cole Palmer 👀
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/jaUjHV8eLo
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 23, 2024
[Footage from TNT Sport]
Only VAR clowns could look at this challenge on Cole Palmer and not see a stone-cold red for Ndidi. Unbelievable. #LEICHE #CFC pic.twitter.com/GVohCyMZb2
— TROJAN🖕🏽 (@iamthatNegro) November 23, 2024
[Footage from BeinSport]
VAR lets down players again as vicious Ndidi challenge goes unpunished
We hate VAR, and we don’t want to get into a whole debate about it. But if you are going to insist on having it, how can you have it not intervene in situations like this? The TNT Sports coverage in the UK claimed that the operators thought that the challenge “lacked intensity”, which is just absurd. He left the ground in making the tackle – how much more intense can you get than that?
Joe Cole and Peter Crouch agreed – it was deliberate and vicious, “he should be sent off.”
They also noted that Ndidi had a chance to equalise later in the half. If this game ends up being anything other than a Chelsea win, there’s going to be serious controversy.
