Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah saw red as Chelsea lost 3-1 to Brighton on Saturday afternoon.
The Blues, who had taken the lead in the match, struggled to control the tempo after going down to 10 men and eventually succumbed to late pressure.
Two goals from Danny Welbeck, either side of a Maxim De Cuyper strike, earned all three points for Brighton at Stamford Bridge and moved them level with their opponents from West London.
What is Trevor Chalobah’s suspension situation?
Chalobah, who rose through the youth ranks at Chelsea to become a first-team regular, has played nine games so far this season and scored two goals.
Manager Enzo Maresca understands the importance of the defender to his side and was frustrated following his sending off.
“For sure, you can't continue to make mistakes. They are game-changing mistakes”, he said.
“The message that we just said inside is clear: against any team in the Premier League, you cannot continue to give away presents. These are big mistakes and the game completely changed”, he continued.
Chalobah’s red card means that he’ll miss the match against Liverpool this weekend, as he’ll be suspended.
His absence causes further defensive headaches for Maresca, who is also without Levi Colwill, Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana. Two teenage centre-backs, Josh Acheampong and Jorrel Hato, are poised to deputise against the reigning Premier League champions on Saturday.
