Richard Keys has slammed the ‘nonsense’ VAR non-penalty call during Chelsea’s 3-1 defeat to Brighton, which saw the Seagulls denied a late spot kick following Malo Gusto’s challenge on Yankuba Minteh.
Enzo Maresca’s side prolonged their winless Premier League run to three with a dramatic loss at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon, as late goals from Danny Welbeck and Maxim de Cuyper secured all three points for Brighton.
Chelsea went ahead in the first half when Enzo Fernandez headed in Reece James’ cross, but their fortunes turned around after Trevoh Chalobah’s dismissal following his challenge on Georginio Rutter.
After a lengthy VAR review, the Blues were reduced to 10 men, allowing the visitors to take advantage, with Welbeck netting twice and De Cuyper adding another to seal victory in stoppage time.
Malo Gusto Escapes Red in Chelsea v Brighton
Keys believes Brighton were wrongly denied a penalty late in the second half, when Gusto made a high-boot challenge on Minteh.
The on-field referee and VAR officials both rejected Brighton’s penalty claims, prompting the former Sky Sports presenter to take to X and brand the decision ‘nonsense’.
The Premier League Match Centre offered an explanation for why a penalty was not awarded to Brighton, saying ‘there was no conclusive evidence’ that the two players made contact:
“The referee’s call of no penalty was checked and confirmed by VAR – with it deemed there was no conclusive evidence that Gusto made any contact with Minteh.”
Chalobah’s sending off marked a second consecutive weekend in which Chelsea saw a player dismissed, following Robert Sanchez’s red in the 2-1 defeat at Manchester United.
Following the full-time whistle on Saturday, Maresca accepted that his side cannot expect to get results if they continue to play significant portions of top-flight matches with 10 men:
“Against any team in the Premier League, you can’t continue to give away presents, because at this moment we are giving presents with red cards.
“You cannot continue to make mistakes because they are big, game-changing mistakes; the red card against Manchester United and the red card today.”
Chelsea have won just once in their last five games in all competitions, a 2-1 win over Lincoln City in the EFL Cup third round, and have taken just one point from their last three Premier League matches.
The Blues next host Jose Mourinho’s Benfica on Tuesday in the Champions League, followed by a clash against reigning champions Liverpool next weekend.