Jamie Carragher has described Moises Caicedo’s Chelsea debut against West Ham United as a “nightmare”.
Moises Caicedo came on in the second half as a substitute but gave away a penalty, which Lucas Paqueta converted to make it 3-1 as West Ham went on to claim all three points in the London derby.
The midfielder’s performance overall, though, left Carragher far from impressed. Discussing Caicedo live on Sky Sports after the 21-year-old was introduced, the Liverpool legend said: “Caicedo has come on and he’s actually found it difficult. He’s gone past him there again.”
After Caicedo gave away the penalty, Carragher also said: “He’s had a bit of a nightmare since he came on, you have to say.”
Moises Caicedo is not why Chelsea lost
In the end, it certainly was a debut to forget for Caicedo. However, at the point where he gave away the penalty, Chelsea already looked beat.
What cost the Blues today was Enzo Fernandez’s penalty miss and arguably some poor defending at the back, which Michail Antonio capitalised on to put West Ham 2-1 up.
It is a bit of a setback after Chelsea’s promising display against Liverpool last weekend. Going forward, if Mauricio Pochettino’s side are to have any hope of finishing in the top four, they cannot afford to let performances such as the one at the London Stadium become a recurring theme. If they do, this season is going to look a lot like the last one.
As for Caicedo, it is early days. But because of his price tag, there is going to be a lot of scrutiny already. Against Luton Town, he has to do much better.
At home and taking on a newly-promoted side, Chelsea will fancy their chances. But if the Blues defend like how they did today, then they are going to be in big trouble.
