Chelsea can thank the intricacies of UEFA’s disciplinary rules—and João Pedro’s own recklessness—for the Brazilian’s absence against Ajax on Wednesday evening.
The summer recruit has enjoyed a blistering start to life in blue. Pedro has scarcely finished filming his announcement video on Miami beach by the time he made his debut for Chelsea in the Club World Cup. On his first start for the west London outfit, he scored twice in a semifinal victory over his boyhood club, Fluminense.
The versatile 24-year-old has extended his fine form to the Premier League, directly contributing to five goals across the first eight top-flight appearances for Chelsea. However, Pedro’s Champions League debut at Stamford Bridge ended on a sour note.
Enzo Maresca sent Pedro on against Benfica in the 61st minute. By the 62nd, he had been booked for a foul. All the jeopardy of José Mourinho’s Chelsea homecoming had evaporated by stoppage time, when Pedro still felt compelled to raise his boot while challenging with Leandro Barreiro. Daniel Siebert promptly produced a second yellow card, handing Chelsea’s No. 20 a red card which came with a one-match suspension.
Aside from exceptional cases, bans in UEFA competition do not carry across to domestic matches—hence why Pedro was allowed to line up against Liverpool four days later. And so, as Chelsea take on Ajax in their next Champions League fixture after that Benfica clash, they will have to do so without Pedro.
Chelsea’s Red Card Problem
Pedro is hardly the only ill-disciplined member of the Blues squad. There have been five red cards in Chelsea’s last six matches, including one for Maresca. The manager and his captain Reece James may be adamant that there is nothing behind this spate of dismissals, but in terms of pure availability, the suspensions are starting to add up.
Fortunately for Maresca, Liam Delap is nearing his return from a lengthy injury layoff. The English forward isn’t quite back in time to fill Pedro’s void against Ajax but could help his South American teammate if they can rediscover the fruitful partnership which was blossoming before Delap’s injury.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Why Joao Pedro Isn’t Playing for Chelsea vs. Ajax.