Chelsea Must Upgrade Star ‘Roman Abramovich Would’ve Sold’ Already After Man Utd Loss

Chelsea fans were left outraged by goalkeeper Robert Sanchez following his exploits in their Premier League clash against Manchester United.

Hoping for a swift return to form after a 3-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League mid-week, Chelsea travelled to Old Trafford to face a Man United side who, under Ruben Amorim, have continued to look like a team struggling for consistency.

Any plans Chelsea had for the match, however, were quickly thrown into disarray when, after just five minutes had been played, Robert Sanchez was dismissed for a rash challenge on Bryan Mbeumo. The Blues, in turn, made two substitutions, though could not prevent Bruno Fernandes from opening the scoring just 14 minutes into the match, a 100th Man United goal for the Portuguese on his 200th appearance.

Minutes later, Cole Palmer was replaced by Andrey Santos as Enzo Maresca looked to offer his midfield more structure. With less than 10 minutes of regular time remaining in the first half, though, Casemiro doubled the Red Devils’ lead, only for the Brazilian to pick up a second yellow card in stoppage time and be given his marching orders for two fairly needless tackles.

As rain lashed down at Old Trafford, Chelsea thought they had reduced the deficit to one goal just after the hour mark, only for Wesley Fofana’s headed effort to be ruled out for offside. Trevoh Chalobah pulled one back for the London side with 10 minutes remaining, but the damage had already been dealt by Man United, who emerged as victors.

Even before the game had reached its end, however, Chelsea fans took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to make their feelings about their goalkeeper known.

‘What On Earth Is He Doing’

Sanchez was dismissed for a lunging tackle on Mbeumo, who was charging down on his goal at the time. While an intervention would have been ideal, it was clear early on that the Spaniard had no real chance of reaching the ball and as such, when he made contact with his man, the referee was left with no choice but to send Sanchez off.

One Chelsea fan noted that it is now “very difficult to defend Sanchez,” who “always blows hot and cold.” Another noted that the goalkeeper had “robbed” Chelsea of a good game at Old Trafford, imploring Chelsea’s sporting directors to find a new shot-stopper for the club.

Elsewhere on social media, one Blues supporter noted that Roman Abramovich, former owner of the club, “would have sold Sanchez and sacked Maresca before half-time.”

“I never want to see Robert Sanchez wearing the Chelsea shirt ever again. I’ve seen enough, I’ve been through enough.”

Though his red card against Man United is certainly a low point for Sanchez, it is not the first time that the former Brighton goalkeeper’s position has been called into question.

Sanchez Has Struggled For Some Time

Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez smiling

Since joining Chelsea from Brighton in 2023, Sanchez has certainly had a tumultuous time at Stamford Bridge. The 27-year-old is brilliant at his best, evidenced recently in the Club World Cup when, as part of the tournament-winning side, Sanchez received the Golden Glove award, designated to the competition’s best shot-stopper.

The Spanish international, however, is prone to making mistakes, with his sending off against Man United not being his first example of rash behaviour in a Chelsea shirt.

For all the money that Chelsea have spent in recent years, it is staggering that the Blues have not secured a more reliable number one. Sanchez’s dismissal at Old Trafford may serve to be the final nail in the coffin for his time at Chelsea, who are looking to make a swift return to a position from which they can contend for major honours.