Chelsea beat Fulham amid VAR controversy at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea moved top of the Premier League with a 2-0 win over Fulham, but the game was overshadowed by two major VAR interventions that left Marco Silva furious.

Josh King thought he had given Fulham the lead after 21 minutes when he cut inside and buried a low strike past Robert Sanchez, only for referee Rob Jones to overturn the goal following a pitchside review.

VAR official Michael Salisbury advised Jones to check Rodrigo Muniz’s earlier contact with Trevoh Chalobah, ruling it a “careless challenge” in the build-up.

The decision sparked disbelief from Silva, who described it as “unbelievable” in his post-match press conference.

“It is not a foul, it should stand,” he said. “The VAR should just stay out of it—it was not a clear and obvious error. Nobody thinks that is a foul.”

Former referee Mike Dean agreed, calling it a “poor, poor call” on Soccer Saturday, Pundits including Jamie Carragher also labelled the intervention “shocking.”

Chelsea took advantage just before half-time when Joao Pedro’s header struck the arm of Ryan Sessegnon. After another lengthy review, Jones awarded a penalty—despite VAR also checking a potential foul on Alex Iwobi and a handball by Pedro earlier in the move.

Enzo Fernandez converted to double the hosts’ lead.

Silva again voiced his frustration at the inconsistency of the officiating.

“The same VAR that found something unbelievable in the first half didn’t see the stamp on Iwobi or the push on Andersen,” he said.

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca insisted both decisions were correct:

“It was quite clear. Their player kicked ours for the first one, and the penalty is handball. I am very happy with the result, if not the first half.”

Despite Fulham’s spirited first-half performance, the disallowed goal proved a turning point, Deflated after the restart, Silva’s men slipped to their first league defeat of the season.

Analysis

Silva cut a frustrated figure throughout, pacing the touchline and remonstrating with officials as decision after decision went against his side.

Fulham had looked the better team early on, only to see their momentum killed by VAR.

The Fulham manager chose to focus on positives post-match, stressing that his side had impressed in performances against Brighton, Manchester United and now Chelsea, even if results have yet to reflect their efforts.

With reinforcements expected before Deadline Day, Silva remains confident luck will soon turn. But for now, VAR—and not their football—was the talking point from Stamford Bridge.