A week after captain Reece James was sent off as well, Chelsea supporters vented on social media about captain Conor Gallagher’s dismissal during the first half of the team’s match against Brighton.
James was suspended following his red card at Newcastle, therefore Gallagher was given the armband for Sunday’s Premier League match at Stamford Bridge. However, in the first half of the match, the midfield player received two yellow cards and was eventually sent off.
Chelsea supporters had harsh things to say about Gallagher’s ejection, even though the Blues—who were leading 2-1 at the time of his dismissal—held on to win 3-2 at the Bridge during a suspenseful finale.
With a siren emoji, a fan commented: “Conor Gallagher RED CARD. 2 Chelsea Captains sent off in 2 weeks. This lack of discipline from our leaders is completely unacceptable FFS!”
Another said: “Gallagher Red, back to back games out captain sent off’ alongside a crying emoji and a frustrated meme.”
A third said: “Our captains are actually mad you know. Gallagher from minute 1 looked like an animal unleashed. You could see him get a red a mile away.”
Although Mauricio Pochettino’s team ultimately performed well enough to take all three points and move up into the top half of the Premier League standings, several urged the Chelsea manager to alter the captaincy at Stamford Bridge.
“This red card aside, I have and will never understand Gallagher as vice captain,” one person stated.
Another wrote: “Such a reckless play by midfield especially by Conor Gallagher. Leading 2-0, giving away 1 goal and then red card. Pochettino should set this an example and remove Gallagher from Captaincy. Enzo [Fernandez] should be the captain, such a cool headed guy.”
It happened just one week after Reece James was sent off for similar reasons against Newcastle, as he pulled back Anthony Gordon to prevent the Magpies’ winner from entering the penalty area, earning his second yellow card of the match.
The next match for Chelsea is on Wednesday night away to Manchester United, followed by an away trip to Everton four days later.