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By TAMARA PRENN, SENIOR SPORTS REPORTER Published: 10: 03 AEDT, 15 January 2026 | Updated: 10: 03 AEDT, 15 January 2026 18 View comments Liam Rosenior was forced to immediately intervene as Chelsea captain for the evening Enzo Fernandez looked to get involved in a full-time spat with a number of Arsenal players after the Blues' 3-2 defeat on Wednesday evening. The west London side's discipline issues are infamous and this season Chelsea are the most badly behaved across Europe's top divisions in Premier League action so far, having notched up five red cards and 46 yellow cards. The hosts were forced to go without their midfield talisman Moises Caicedo due to his suspension after being awarded his second yellow in Carabao Cup action for sarcastically clapping a refereeing decision during their quarter-final clash with Cardiff last year. But new manager Rosenior was keen to avoid further punitive measures after the first leg of their semi-final, taking matters into his own hands. Fernandez was seen in a fierce exchange of words with Arsenal forward Gabriel Jesus and summer signing Martin Zubimendi after the final whistle as their team-mates surrounded them in a melee. Jesus attempted to draw Fernandez back from Zubimendi as tensions increased, with Pedro Neto stepping between the two men to provide a further buffer. Liam Rosenior in the thick of it as Enzo Fernandez squares up to Martin Zubimendi! ? pic. twitter. com/y Jn3l DHHj K Liam Rosenior was inadvertently drawn into the fray as he attempted to keep Enzo Fernandez out of trouble The new Chelsea manager has a job ahead of him stamping out the Blues' disciplinary issues But as the Argentina star spotted Zubimendi unprotected moments later, he charged over to his rival yet again and appeared to grab his neck - only for Rosenior to arrive and drag his player back to safety. Rosenior seemed to raise his voice at his players as both Arsenal and Chelsea team-mates gathered, with Fernandez then appearing to switch his focus to former colleague Havertz. The former Strasbourg manager eventually pulled his captain away from the throng, passing him off to team-mates Marc Cucurella and Trevoh Chalobah. Rosenior watched Chelsea pick up their seventh red card in all competitions from the stands in his first outing as their new head coach last week against Fulham, with Cucurella the target of a straight red dished out at Craven Cottage. During match action, both Arsenal and Chelsea received four yellow cards apiece, with Cucurella, Estevao, Neto, and Benoit Badiashile the home receipients, and Jurrien Timber, Mikel Merino, Kepa Arrizabalaga, and Leandro Trossard picking them up in Arsenal colours. Caicedo will return to the side in time to rescue the tie in the second leg at the start of February, with one solitary goal separating the two sides. Arsenal opened the scoring in fewer than seven minutes courtesy of a well-timed header from Ben White, before doubling their lead via a goal that should raise the spirits of scorer Viktor Gyokeres. Alejandro Garnacho was introduced as a second-half substitute by Rosenior and quickly proved his worth with a first goal in the 57th minute, and a second in the 83rd.
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