Antonio Conte has revealed that he has no issues with Cesc Fabregas Red Card

Antonio Conte has revealed that he has no issues with Cesc Fabregas’ red card against Liverpool in a friendly game.

He has also confirmed that this will not affect his chances of featuring in the first team when the proper season starts on August 13. Fabregas’ form in the last 12 months has come under intense scrutiny. He was a major factor in the club’s title success during the 2014-15 season, but he has been negated by opposition who have marked him out of the game directly. Fabregas has been ineffective in an advanced position, while being even poorer in a defensive role.

However, there have been signs of resurgent form during pre-season until the moment Fabregas got himself sent off with a bad challenge against Liverpool’s Ragnar Klavan. The Spaniard went into the challenge with his studs showing and the referee did not think twice about sending him off with a straight red card. Later, Fabregas issued his apology to the player and stated that his intention was not to cause harm. Opposition manager Jurgen Klopp also downplayed the incident later. Chelsea start their new campaign with a home match against rivals West Ham.

The signing of Kante from Leicester City is likely to mean that Fabregas will be used as an attacking playmaker by Conte."It's a red card. He (Fabregas) came by us in the dressing room and said sorry. He came too late in the challenge, of course. Sometimes in life if you are too late you get a red card, especially in football. Hopefully it's not too serious. Injuries after games like this in pre-season is the biggest problem obviously," said opposition manager Jurgen Klopp. Chelsea ended up winning the match 1-0 to continue their good run of form in pre-season, although they failed to win the International Champions Cup.