Chelsea can thank the intricacies of UEFA’s disciplinary rules—and João Pedro’s own recklessness—for the Brazilian’s absence against Ajax on Wednesday evening.
The summer recruit has enjoyed a blistering start to life in blue. Pedro has scarcely finished filming his announcement video on Miami beach by the time he made his debut for Chelsea in the Club World Cup. On his first start for the west London outfit, he scored twice in a semifinal victory over his boyhood club, Fluminense.
The versatile 24-year-old has extended his fine form to the Premier League, directly contributing to five goals across the first eight top-flight appearances for Chelsea. However, Pedro’s Champions League debut at Stamford Bridge ended on a sour note.
Enzo Maresca sent Pedro on against Benfica in the 61st minute. By the 62nd, he had been booked for a foul. All the jeopardy of José Mourinho’s Chelsea homecoming had evaporated by stoppage time, when Pedro still felt compelled to raise his boot while challenging with Leandro Barreiro. Daniel Siebert promptly produced a second yellow card, handing Chelsea’s No. 20 a red card which came with a one-match suspension.
Aside from exceptional cases, bans in UEFA competition do not carry across to domestic matches—hence why Pedro was allowed to line up against Liverpool four days later. And so, as Chelsea take on Ajax in their next Champions League fixture after that Benfica clash, they will have to do so without Pedro.
