Terrible, terrible tackle.
Chelsea, looking dead and buried at one point at St Mary’s, fought back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Southampton. Two goals from Olivier Giroud and an Eden Hazard effort in an extraordinary nine-minute burst clinched all three points for Antonio Conte’s side after a dramatic afternoon.
But Mark Hughes will be furious – and with good reason. Not only were the Saints two goals ahead after strikes from Dusan Tadic and Premier League debutant Jan Bednarek, Marcos Alonso escaped punishment for his shocking challenge on Shane Long.
As you can clearly see from the screenshots below, Alonso goes in hard and late on the Irishman, clamping his studs down into Long’s calf. It was a malicious and dangerous tackle and one that should have seen the Chelsea defender given his marching orders.
But, not only did referee Mike Dean fail to spot it, he allowed Chelsea to continue with their attack while the Blues players refused to kick the ball out of play.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, ex-Chelsea player Pat Nevin described it as ‘vile.’
“It’s horrible,” Nevin said. “The cameras are all on Alonso. Everyone knows how vile a tackle that was. There is no excusing that in any way.”
Back under way at St Mary's.
Is Marcos Alonso very lucky to still be on the pitch?
His challenge on Shane Long's leg left a lot to be desired…
📻https://t.co/rXLeOdBocH #SOUCHE pic.twitter.com/NQTgrmH2P2
— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) April 14, 2018
But Southampton’s misery turned to a burning sense of injustice when Alonso teed up Giroud for Chelsea’s first goal, launching their comeback.
Now, having collapsed in the second half, Southampton are very much staring down the barrel of relegation, but they will be right to feel aggrieved by Alonso getting away with that one.
It could have been a serious injury for Long. As Irish fans, that’s the last thing we want to see after Coleman and McCarthy.
