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Moises Caicedo can consider himself a lucky boy after the Chelsea midfielder escaped a red card for an 'awful' tackle on Newcastle's Anthony Gordon.
Chelsea's £115million summer signing has struggled to adapt to his new surroundings at Stamford Bridge and almost put his side on the back foot immediately in the Carabao Cup quarter-final clash on Tuesday. Just a minute into the clash, Caicedo was chasing Toon star Gordon back when he launched into a reckless tackle.
Caicedo's studs scraped down the back of Gordon's leg in a stamping motion from near the back of his knee to his achilles. Gordon screamed in agony as he fell to the turf wincing in pain, but Caicedo was shown just a yellow card.
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Fans were quick to react to the tackle on social media, with one fan branding it 'awful' while another joked that Caicedo 'fancies Christmas off', suggesting the former Brighton man was hopeful of a well-timed suspension to enjoy the festivities and miss Chelsea's clash with Wolves on Christmas Eve.
Newcastle have been juggling a troublesome injury crisis and one fan branded Caicedo's lunge as "disgraceful". Fortunately Gordon was able to continue, and Chelsea's evening quickly suffered another setback when Callum Wilson scored after 15 minutes to put the visitors ahead.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Should Caicedo have seen red? Let us know in the comments below.
Mauricio Pochettino's side went into the tie looking to avenge a hefty 4-1 defeat inflicted on them by Newcastle in the Premier League just weeks ago. The Carabao Cup represents Chelsea's best chance of silverware this season, with the Blues not involved in Europe and languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League table.
Caicedo rejected the chance to join high-flying Liverpool in the summer, instead opting to stick with a move to Chelsea who had chased him for months. He was previously at the centre of bids from Arsenal but Brighton turned down two offers as they strived to keep hold of the Ecuadorian.
Liverpool fans were also among those commenting on social media about how they felt they'd had a lucky escape of their own by missing out on Caicedo's signature. "Everyday is a blessing since we missed out on Caicedo," one wrote, while another said: "Just a reminder that we made Chelsea pay £115 MILLION for Moises Caicedo. Biggest scam in football history."
The Seagulls reluctantly sold Caicedo, though they forced Chelsea to stump up a club-record fee for his services. The 22-year-old has, like Chelsea, severely underwhelmed so far this season, and he opened up on his struggles in a recent interview, admitting he was going through a bad spell.
"In such a short time I have had a lot of success," he told Telemundo Network. "At a young age I achieved many things, my selection, in Brighton; It hasn't been seen now because I just arrived. Football always gives this, ups and downs.
"Now I think that the club and I are not going through a good moment, but I'm calm because I knew that this could come. I must be mentally strong. The same people who put you up, bring you down. I have understood and I have not let myself be carried away by anyone's flattery. I always worked for myself, I know how good I am, and if my family knows that, it's enough for me."
- Chelsea FC
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