‘Unbelievable’ — Bassey and Iwobi’s boss slams VAR decisions after Chelsea loss

Fulham boss Marco Silva was left furious after his side’s 2-0 defeat to Chelsea, calling the officiating “unbelievable” and slamming key VAR interventions that swung the heated west London derby.

The Portuguese manager believes crucial calls robbed his side of momentum and unfairly punished players like Alex Iwobi.

Silva’s anger boiled over when 18-year-old Josh King thought he had scored his first senior goal in the 21st minute, only for VAR official Michael Salisbury to ask referee Rob Jones to review a potential foul in the buildup.

Rodrigo Muniz was deemed to have caught Trevoh Chalobah, despite appearing to be in control of the ball. “To disallow a goal like that is unbelievable,” Silva fumed.

Things went from bad to worse when Chelsea were awarded a penalty for Ryan Sessegnon’s handball, again after VAR review.

Fulham felt hard done by as earlier fouls on Iwobi and Joachim Andersen were ignored. Silva pointed out: “It’s the same VAR that found something unbelievable: a stamp from Rodrigo. The same people didn’t find a stamp on Alex Iwobi before the penalty.”

The manager highlighted a string of injustices involving his Nigerian internationals. Just last week, Fulham had a goal allowed against them when Manchester United’s Leny Yoro shoved Calvin Bassey before an own goal.

Against Chelsea, Silva argued Iwobi was fouled in the buildup to the decisive spot-kick. “There was a stamp on Alex Iwobi, handball by João Pedro, push on Joachim Andersen,” he said, lamenting the missed calls.

Silva also raged over extended stoppage time, claiming Enzo Fernández’s opener came in the ninth added minute when only eight were indicated. “He has to stop the game, it’s the rules,” Silva protested.