Enzo Maresca believes it was “quite clear for all of us” that Lisandro Martinez should have been sent off for his “dangerous” challenge on Cole Palmer during Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
The spoils were shared at Old Trafford, where a superb Moises Caicedo volley cancelled out Bruno Fernandes’ earlier penalty.
However, Maresca felt United should have been reduced to 10 men following Martinez’s late tackle on Palmer, with referee Robert Jones showing the defender a yellow card following a VAR review.
“I think it is quite clear for all of us, but the referee took a different decision,” he said. “When you don’t go for the ball and just the man, it is a red. There is no intention to take the ball and it is dangerous.”
Nevertheless, the Italian was pleased with the way his players dealt with facing United, who were overseen by interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy in their first league game since Erik ten Hag’s dismissal.
“We are happy because we knew how difficult it would be,” Maresca added. “The [United] players want to prove they’re good enough. A new manager with different ideas, so we had to prepare a different way.
“Overall, United were similar [to under Ten Hag]we expected them to be a bit more aggressive. For a large part of the game, we were in control, there was a desire to win the game, and we lost our balance in the last 10 minutes or so.
“When you go down in this stadium, it’s very difficult to come back, but we did that. Then, we tried to win it.”
“We knew if we waited for a long time [to equalise], it was going to be complicated,” Caicedo told BBC Sport. “I’m so happy to equalise.
“We deserved to win. We knew it would be a tough game, but we were prepared for it. I’m so happy for the team. It was a great fight.”
