‘I’m surprised VAR hasn’t given a pen’: Chelsea’s Edouard Mendy lucky to escape punishment for rash challenge on Burnley’s Ashley Barnes in similar collision to Jordan Pickford’s tackle on Virgil van Dijk
- Fans have reacted to a rash challenge by Edouard Mendy on Ashley Barnes
- The Chelsea keeper escaped punishment after colliding with the Burnley star
- The challenge has been compared with Jordan Pickford’s on Virgil van Dijk
Social media has been rife with speculation after Chelsea new boy Edouard Mendy went unpunished for a rash challenge on Ashley Barnes in the Blues’ clash with Burnley on Saturday.
The goalkeeper, who joined from Lille earlier this summer, was not punished after racing out to meet striker Barnes who was through on goal in the opening few minutes.
The striker lofted the ball over the bar but was clattered by the 28-year-old, in a challenge that has drawn comparisons to Jordan Pickford’s horrendous tackle on Virgil van Dijk.
Fans have slammed a decision not to punish Edouard Mendy for a challenge on Ashley Barnes
The Chelsea new boy collided with the Burnley striker as he was through on goal on Saturday
The Dutch defender required surgery on his knee after a poor challenge from the Everton goalkeeper in the Merseyside derby earlier this month saw him suffer serious anterior cruciate ligament damage.
And fans have questioned why Mendy was not punished for the challenge, with many pointing to the bad tackle from Pickford as reason for the Frenchman to be punished.
‘Mendy just Pickforded Barnes but because he’s fine it gets no scrutiny at all,’ said @jorgalbertz. ‘Anywhere elseon [sic] the pitch, or not the keeper, that’s a foul.’
The rash challenge has been compared with that of Jordan Pickford on Virgil van Dijk
The Liverpool star is out for the majority of the campaign after being fouled by the Everton star
Burnley fan @thesliz said: ‘How do we concede a penalty at Newcastle when Pope trips Fraser after his shot, but Mendy clatters Barnes after his shot and nothing is given?’
@l3ahpar said: ‘I’m surprised VAR hasn’t given that as a pen tbh… Mendy took him out albeit after the ball’.
‘Barnes lifts ball over Mendy from Lowton diagonal, and gets clattered by Mendy,’ says @bodenknights. ‘Should score, but I’m struggling to see why Fraser gets a pen at Newcastle and Barnes doesn’t?’
Liverpool team-mates Adrian and Georginio Wijnaldum were already among the Anfield stars who insisted they could not defend the England No 1 for the tackle, with the latter labelling it ‘stupid’.
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson admitted that while goalkeeper’s can have different techniques when tackling he insisted that Pickford’s challenge was ‘an unnecessary moment’.
Fans have reacted to the foul, with some comparing it to the challenge by Pickford on Van Dijk
‘Every goalkeeper has a different way to play, a different way to move, but on that moment 100 per cent it is not a necessary movement,’ he told Sky Sports.
‘But thinking what I have in my mind when I go for a situation, I go to finish the situation because if I go too soft I know the opponent can score.
‘Everyone has their own way to go for the ball. I don’t agree with that [Pickford’s] way, everybody can see that but yeah it was just an unnecessary moment and movement.’
Burnley fans compared the decision to one awarded against them in the Newcastle game
Liverpool boss Klopp also slammed the challenge by Pickford.
‘A couple of days ago something happened which should not have happened in a football game,’ he said.
‘Both challenges were difficult to accept. It’s hard for us because Virgil is our boy. Usually, players try to play the ball but not in these two challenges.
‘In the last four years, we were the leader of the fair play table. We don’t get anything for that, it’s something people joke about. We were up there in both tables. You can play football without these kind of challenges.’