‘Pure stupidity’ – Chelsea fans tell Liam Rosenior to end ‘painful’ Malo Gusto experiment
Chelsea fans have urged Liam Rosenior to move Malo Gusto back to his natural position of right-back after he was poor at left-back in their 1-1 draw against Burnley.
Chelsea were held to a 1-1 draw against relegation-battlers Burnley at Stamford Bridge on Saturday as they dropped points in the race to qualify for the Champions League.
Joao Pedro bundled the hosts ahead early on from Pedro Neto’s low cross, and an uneventful game was sparked into life in the 72nd minute as Wesley Fofana was sent off for a second bookable offence.
The Clarets pushed for a vital equaliser late on, and scored it in injury-time as Zian Flemming met James Ward-Prowse’s corner to secure a point.
Chelsea have now lost ground on those around them in the race for Champions League qualification, with many fans telling Rosenior that he has to stop playing Gusto at left-back from now on following his poor performance.
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Chelsea fans slam Malo Gusto for ineffective left-back showing
Gusto is a right-back by trade, but this was the third time this season that he has started a league game on the left of a back four, with Chelsea now failing to win any of those three matches.
The Frenchman was seriously ineffective when going forward against Burnley, as he failed to create a chance or deliver an accurate cross in his 80 minutes on the pitch.
His link-up play with left-winger Neto was largely non-existent, and a particular moment in the second half, when his no-look cross could only find the first Burnley defender, effectively summed up his poor showing.
Taking to X to react to his performance and urge Rosenior not to play him on the left again, one fan said: “I can barely take Gusto at RB, at LB he makes me want to rip my hair out. I honestly can’t stand him.”
Another added: “Gusto on the left is annoying, his first thought is to always play back instead of playing the ball forward.”
While one supporter said: “Gusto starting ahead of Hato in a position that he doesn’t play is pure stupidity.”
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Chelsea fall out of predicted Champions League places after Burnley draw
Chelsea have now dropped points in their last two league games, both against relegation-threatened Leeds and Burnley sides, yet they still sit fourth in the Premier League as it stands.
Fifth-placed Man United and sixth-placed Liverpool are still to play this weekend, however, and they could fall behind the former if they beat Everton on Monday.
Following their recent drop off, Opta‘s supercomputer is now predicting Chelsea to finish in sixth place this season, behind both of those clubs, with 61.33 expected points.
Liverpool are backed to finish fourth, with a 40.04 per cent chance of making the Champions League, while United have a 35.32 per cent chance, and the Blues are stuck behind them on 28.56 per cent.