Chelsea manager, Enzo Maresca, has leaped in defence of Wilfred Ndidi following his controversial challenge on Cole Palmer that raised concerns during the match.
The former Leicester City boss, who coached Ndidi last season, said the Nigerian midfielder did not have any malicious intent when he fouled the English International.
Ndidi was shown a yellow card for a tackle on Palmer in the first half, which left the Chelsea star with a painful scrape on his Achilles tendon.
Despite the protests from Chelsea players calling for a red card, Maresca believes that Ndidi’s challenge was not severe enough to warrant a sending-off.
Reflecting on the incident, Maresca pointed out that the lack of intensity and short distance of the foul meant that it didn’t meet the threshold for a red card, as reported by Football. London.
“I don’t think Cole Palmer was the target of the challenge,” said Maresca.
“In situations where there is clear ill intent, the punishment should be more severe, as I mentioned after the Manchester United game.
“But in this case, I don’t believe there was any bad intention from Wilf (Ndidi).”
He continued, “Looking at the replay, I don’t think it was a red card. I believe the decision was correct.”
