Exclusive: Pedro Neto should be ‘retrospectively banned’ after Chelsea ‘disrespect’
Chelsea winger Pedro Neto showed a lack of respect to Southampton’s Armel Bella-Kotchap, according to Keith Hackett.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider that the FA needs to bring in “retrospective punishment” after Neto went down under minimal contact from Bella-Kotchap.
Chelsea moved into the top four of the Premier League with a comfortable 4-0 win over Southampton on Tuesday evening (25 February).
Manager Enzo Maresca had been under pressure, but the result will now give him some breathing room, with the Blues in pole position to qualify for the Champions League.
Neto scored and assisted for Chelsea, in a performance that saw the Portuguese forward score his third league goal of the season.
However, his decision to dramatically fall to ground in the 30th minute, after an outstretched hand from the German defender, caught the keen eye of Hackett.
Pedro Neto dive a part of declining respect in Premier League football
Chelsea were leading Southampton 1-0 on the half-hour mark, when referee Thomas Bramall was advised by VAR that they were looking at an incident involving the former Wolves man.
However, the check was over almost before it had begun, with the referee informed not to take action.
The incident was then shown as a replay, where Neto made a burst forward, and Bell-Kotchap raised his hand towards the Chelsea forward.
| Performance vs Southampton | Neto |
| Minutes | 68 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Expected goals | 0.07 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Expected assists | 0.19 |
| Big chances created | 1 |
Following the dive, ex-PGMOL chief gave his insight exclusively to Football Insider, saying:
“Sadly, the respect that players should have for their opponents is in decline. Incidents like this should be accurately judged by the match official, who should issue a yellow card to each player.
“I have said for some time that the FA should bring in a procedure where these types of incidents are viewed, and where appropriate, have retrospective punishment applied, with at least a one game ban.”
Bella-Kotchap’s reaction showed how normalised incident’s like these have become, with the defender not even bothering to protest against what was a clear dive, instead heading towards the bench for a drink of water, and some tactical instructions.
Pedro Neto escapes punishment as Chelsea dispatch of Southampton
Enzo Maresca was criticised for his decision to start Christopher Nkunku against Southampton, but the French forward shone for the Blues in their 4-0 win.
The Blues dealt with Southampton’s early pressure, and Filip Jorgensen made a good save from a Paul Onuachu header.
The Danish goalkeeper is under pressure to keep his place in the Blues’ side, with Chelsea looking at signing Caoimhin Kelleher in the summer.
By halftime, Chelsea had built a comfortable 3-0 lead, with Marc Cucurella adding a fourth late in the second-half.