At one point, it seemed that Chelsea could be Liverpool’s most serious contender for the Premier League title, but the Blues have squandered everything in the last five rounds. With five consecutive winless matches (three draws and two losses), they now find themselves in sixth place ahead of their clash with Wolverhampton at Stamford Bridge on Monday night. However, the question arises—are Chelsea’s players solely to blame for dropping 12 points, or do English referees share some of the responsibility?Enzo Maresca is not happy with the ref and VAR! 😠(@HaytersTV) #CFC pic.twitter.com/rbbB0djmV1— Chelsea Dodgers (@TheBlueDodger) January 14, 2025 According to official Premier League data, referees have made the most errors against Chelsea this season. In fact, the Referees’ Committee later admitted that VAR made incorrect decisions against Chelsea on three occasions. Specifically, the controversial decisions occurred in the following matches:Leicester vs Chelsea (1-2) – November 23:Wilfred Ndidi fouled Cole Palmer in the 22nd minute. Although there were elements warranting a red card, only a yellow was shown.Chelsea vs Brentford (2-1) – December 15:Yehor Yarmoliuk fouled Marc Cucurella when the score was 0-0, but no penalty was awarded.Everton vs Chelsea (0-0) – December 22:Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made contact with Malo Gusto in the 31st minute, but the referee didn’t spot it, and VAR failed to intervene.Auba reveals shocking things about Tuchel: “It was not the guy I knew a few years ago”Chelsea’s poor run of form seemingly started with that draw against Everton in Liverpool, marking the beginning of a series of disappointing results—and potentially even worse officiating decisions against them. In the following match, Enzo Maresca’s side suffered a shocking late collapse against Fulham, losing 1-2, though there were no controversial refereeing calls in that fixture. However, in the next round on December 30 against Ipswich, controversy struck again. Chelsea lost 0-2, with Ipswich awarded a penalty in the 10th minute. The referees, including those in the VAR room, judged that Chelsea’s goalkeeper, Filip Jørgensen, fouled Liam Delap. However, replays suggested that the contact was minimal—if it even existed at all.Cuper’s oversight could tarnish DR Congo’s World Cup hopesThe 2025 year started also with referee’s decisions in Chelsea games against Crystal Palace and Bournemouth and the Blues are not totally calm before today‘s game with Wolves.“If you ask me, against Southampton, it was a red card (for Jack Stephens pulling Cucurella’s hair). The other day, for me, against Bournemouth, it was a red card for Brooks. They can say anything they want but in the end, we are not going to change a thing. They didn’t whistle for a penalty for us and then we got a mail apologising, saying it should have been a penalty. But we don’t need apologies. In the last game against Bournemouth, it was the first time in the Premier League that they say it was a red card and referee Rob Jones said it was a yellow card. Someone has to be embarrassed about these kind of things, but not us. I love my players, all of them“ said Maresca.Four months ago, ‘Bye, Chalobah’ and now ‘Help, Chalobah’So, in four of Chelsea’s last five matches, their fans have had plenty of reasons to complain about the officiating. And for that reason, they’ll rightfully be looking at tonight’s referee, Simon Hooper, with a fair amount of skepticism. Hooper has officiated Chelsea only once this season—on October 27th against Newcastle at Stamford Bridge. The Blues won that match 2-1, but what stood out was the referee’s strict approach, handing out a total of nine yellow cards, with six of them shown to Chelsea players. Given the recent string of controversial decisions against them, Chelsea supporters will be wary of how Hooper manages tonight’s game against Wolverhampton. Whether he takes center stage again with a flurry of cards or allows the match to flow remains to be seen, but one thing is certain—every call will be under intense scrutiny.ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE – MATCHDAY 22SaturdayNewcastle – Bournemouth 1-4 (1-2)/Guimaraes 25 – Kluivert 6, 44, 90+2, Kerkez 90+6/Brentford – Liverpool 0-2 (0-0)/Darwin 90+1, 90+3/Leicester – Fulham 0-2 (0-0)/Smith Rowe 48, Traore 68/West Ham – Crystal Palace 0-2 (0-0)/Mateta 48, 89 pen/Arsenal – Aston Villa 2-2 (1-0)/Havertz 35, Martinelli 55 – Tielemans 60, Watkins 68/SundayEverton – Tottenham 3-2 (3-0)/Calvert-Lewin 13, Ndiaye 30, Gray 45+7 og – Kulusevski 77, Richarlison 90+2/Man.Utd. – Brighton 1-3 (1-1)/Fernandes 23 pen – Minteh 5, Mitoma 60, Rutter 76/Nott.Forest – Southampton 3-2 (3-0)/Anderson 11, Hudson-Odoi 28, Wood 41 – Bednarek 60, Onuachu 90+1/Ipswich – Man. City 0-6 (0-3)/Foden 27, 42, Kovacic 30, Doku 49, Haaland 57, McAtee 69/Monday23.00: (1.35) Chelsea (5.30) Wolverhampton (8.00)**odds are subject to change**
