Thibaut Courtois: Chelsea appeal red card shown to Chelsea goalkeeper for Bafetimbi Gomis foul
Goalkeeper will miss match against Manchester City if ban is upheld
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Your support makes all the difference.Chelsea have appealed against Thibaut Courtois’ dismissal in Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Swansea City.
Courtois was sent off for a professional foul on Bafetimbi Gomis, which carries a one-match suspension that, if upheld, would rule him out of Sunday’s Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Chelsea, though, today decided to appeal against Courtois’ dismissal by Michael Oliver. The laws of the game state that a player should be sent off only if he denies “an obvious goalscoring opportunity to an opponent moving towards the player’s goal”, and the extent to which that description fits the incident will be the crux of the issue. Chelsea have to submit written and video evidence by 1pm on Tuesday and will find out the Football Association’s decision later in the afternoon.
If the ban is upheld then Asmir Begovic will make his full Chelsea debut, after coming off the bench on Saturday evening.
It was clear after the game on Saturday what Jose Mourinho made of Mr Oliver’s decision to send off Courtois. “It was on day one that we were punished,” he said, refusing to criticise the decision in public. “But it was not on day one that I opened my mouth.”
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