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Chelsea assistant coach Willy Caballero Defending the decision to take off Cole Palmer In a 2-2 draw bournemouth after supporters Stamford Bridge Angry reaction to Enzo Maresca’s substitution.
When Palmer – one of his team’s best players – was substituted in the 63rd minute, “you don’t know what you’re doing” taunts rained down on the home dugout as the hosts chased the winner to end their poor run of form in the Premier League.
It is now one win in seven league games for Chelsea, although Caballero insisted afterwards that the manager Enzo MarescaAlthough absent from post-match media duties due to illness, he remains a “role model” for everyone at the club.
However, the pressure is mounting on the Italians after another defeat, with Chelsea now 13 points adrift of the lead at home.
The atmosphere became particularly ugly when Palmer was withdrawn for the second half, returning from a long-term injury.
“Any fan wants the best player on the pitch,” Caballero said. “We would also like to have players like that. But Cole is going through a long-term injury. In this case, we need to find a way to find suitable substitutes to play in the game while also taking care of the health of our players. We hope that they can continue to play for the rest of the season.”
Talking about Maresca’s absence, Caballero said: “He didn’t feel well in the past two days. He had a fever two days ago. He completed the last two training sessions and he wanted to prepare the team. But after the game, he went to the locker room and asked me to replace him because he felt uncomfortable.”
“He handles it well, he’s very professional. He works long hours every day, even though the last two days he felt bad there. He loves training and coaching. He’s a role model for me and all the staff.”
Bournemouth took the lead after six minutes when David Brooks scored his second after a save from Robert Sanchez, before Chelsea equalized through Palmer’s penalty.
Enzo Fernandez then fired in front of goal but the Blues were again unable to maintain their lead and Justin Kluivert equalized just before half-time after Chelsea failed to deal with Antoine Semenho’s long ball.
There is strong speculation that this will be Semenho’s final game for Bournemouth ahead of his imminent move to Manchester City, and he appeared to say farewell to the away fans before leaving the pitch.
However, head coach Andoni Iraola is confident of his success against Arsenal on Saturday.
“This is not his last game with us,” he said. “I can’t say 100 percent, but I think he will play.
“He has to recover and we have two difficult games in three days. We play Arsenal at home and we are ready for another game, a difficult game against the leaders. He will definitely be an important player for us.”