Through a header from João Pedro and a penalty by Enzo Fernández, Chelsea triumphed over their west London rivals, Fulham, in a contest significantly influenced by decisions from the video assistant referee (VAR) on Saturday.
Josh King believed he had put the visiting team ahead during the first half. However, VAR suggested that the goal be disallowed due to a foul committed by Rodrigo Muniz on Trevoh Chalobah in the lead-up to the goal.
Fulham’s excitement at potentially leading was transformed into a deep sense of injustice for the remainder of the derby, following the extended review conducted by referee Robert Jones at the pitchside monitor.
Pedro, continuing his positive start with Chelsea, scored just before the halftime break. However, Fulham’s frustration grew in the second half due to another VAR decision. This decision initially cleared Pedro of a foul but then penalised Ryan Sessegnon for a handball, allowing Fernández to extend Chelsea’s lead from the penalty spot.
In the early stages, Fulham had created the most promising opportunities. Joachim Andersen and Alex Iwobi both shot narrowly wide. Chelsea also came close to scoring when Liam Delap’s attempt was effectively blocked by Andersen.
That proved to be the extent of Delap’s involvement, as the new signing appeared to suffer a hamstring injury while chasing a long pass, which led to his substitution after just 13 minutes.
King appeared to score a superb goal midway through the first half, skillfully maneuvering past Tosin Adarabioyo during a Fulham counter-attack before placing the ball into the corner of the net. However, referee Jones ruled that Muniz’s action to avoid Chalobah near the halfway line constituted a foul.
This decision angered Silva, along with the travelling Fulham supporters, who believed that Muniz had inadvertently stepped on the Chelsea defender while legitimately attempting to avoid a tackle.
Subsequently, Robert Sánchez made a close-range save from Muniz following a precise pass from Sessegnon, and Moisés Caicedo made a crucial last-ditch tackle to prevent Timothy Castagne from putting Fulham ahead.
In stoppage time of the first half, the home team took the lead. Fernández delivered a corner from the left, and from six yards out, Pedro moved back slightly and expertly angled his head to direct the ball downwards and into the net.
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Fulham conceded a penalty early in the second half when Sessegnon raised his arm to block a cross from Chalobah.
Another lengthy VAR review followed to confirm that Pedro had not fouled anyone moments earlier and that Sessegnon had made his body “unnaturally bigger” when blocking the cross.
From the penalty spot, Fernandez shot straight down the middle, making it 2-0. For the first time in the match, Fulham seemed uncertain of themselves.
Estêvão managed to find space in the penalty area and forced a good save from Bernd Leno at the near post. The goalkeeper was then called into action again to deny Pedro after the defence allowed him a clear run towards goal.
Information from PA contributed to this report
