When Chelsea signed Portuguese talent João Félix from Atlético Madrid on loan I don’t think they imagined his debut would have gone as poorly as it did during Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat against Fulham on Wednesday.
Félix joined the Blues just 30 hours before he was given his first start. With Christian Pulisic, Raheem Sterling and a litany of injuries plaguing the Blues they really didn’t have a choice.
There were glimpses of talent from the 23-year-old as he recorded six shots and four on target. His finishing wasn’t up to snuff but at least he was creating chances.
João Félix's first-half vs Fulham by numbers:
83% passing accuracy
32 touches
5 duels won
5 shots
3 fouls won
3 shots on target
2 possession won
2 successful dribbles
1 chance created
0.77xGA bright spark in a dismal 45 minutes for Chelsea. ✨#FulChe pic.twitter.com/a7e6pfJXKD
— Squawka (@Squawka) January 12, 2023
No one will remember those shots though. Everyone will remember the 58th-minute when Félix went studs up on a tackle for a straight red card.
João Félix Red Card vs Fulham
A poor first touch saw the ball escape Félix. The Chelsea newcomer went flying in for a tackle as Fulham’s Kenny Tete went to take possession. There was never any doubt from the referee on the color of the card.
Joao Felix sees RED in his Chelsea debut.
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) January 12, 2023
Joao Felix can't have any complaints. A reckless challenge. He's been desperate to impress all game, and looked really lively, but on this occasion it was rash and a clear red card. Sad way to end his debut. pic.twitter.com/QLHhXhF2R6
— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) January 12, 2023
Failing to score and making a mess of his debut? Félix is Chelsea through and through even though he joined just two days ago.
This was just the second red card in Félix’s career.
It was former Chelsea No. 10 Willian who opened the scoring in the 25th minute. Chelsea fans must miss having a forward who knows how to score. Willian didn’t celebrate out of respect for his former club.
Willian comes back to bite the hand that used to feed him!
He doesn't celebrate out of respect to his former club.
: @peacock #MyPLMorning | #FULCHE pic.twitter.com/zYPNsRkM2r— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) January 12, 2023
Chelsea equalized two minutes into the second half. A vicious Mason Mount free kick hit off the post and fell to Kalidou Koulibaly, who smashed it home.
Leno was close to keeping Koulibaly's shot out, but the referee's watch goes off and Chelsea are level!
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) January 12, 2023
Félix getting sent off in the 58th minute saw Fulham gain confidence and the momentum up a man. The Cottagers capitalized on the man-advantage with Carlos Vinícius scoring the winner in the 73rd minute.
We're not sure what was better, the cross by Andreas Pereira or the header by Carlos Vinicius.
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) January 12, 2023
Since the restart from the World Cup, Chelsea have only managed one win and one draw across all competitions. In the Premier League the Blues have only recorded one victory in their last nine.
Chelsea sits 10th in the table, 19 points off first place Arsenal.
