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Liam Rosenior questions decision after Reece James incident vs Villa
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- Liam Rosenior questions decision after Reece James incident vs Villa
Photo by Franco Arland/Getty Images
Liam Rosenior wasn't entirely pleased after Chelsea 's 4-1 win over Aston Villa on Wednesday night, pointing to one moment involving Reece James .
Joao Pedro netted a hat-trick and Cole Palmer also got on the scoresheet as the Blues put four past Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez .
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However, they could have had one more, or at least that is how Rosenior would have felt after the game.
Liam Rosenior believes Reece James was denied a penalty in Chelsea's win over Aston Villa
Photo by Rob Newell – CameraSport via Getty Images
Rosenior felt Chelsea should have had a penalty when Ian Maatsen went in on James, and it's still on his mind even though the result wasn't affected.
"I don't understand how we don't get a penalty. The fact we won 4-1 doesn't change that. It's a clear penalty on Reece," Rosenior told Kieran Gill and others after the match.
Chelsea also thought they should have had a spot-kick against Arsenal last weekend when Declan Rice elbowed the ball away from a corner.
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Again, that didn't end up being crucial. Even though Chelsea lost, they scored straight after the incident involving the England midfielder.
Reece James delivers another consistent performance in midfield
After impressing at right-back in Chelsea's 2-1 defeat to Arsenal, James was moved into midfield for the trip to Villa Park.
It's a position he's grown familiar with this season, and he looked comfortable once again, putting in another steady shift against Villa.
While he didn't have quite the same impact as he did at the Emirates, his passing remained sharp. According to Sofascore, he finished the match with a 92% completion rate.
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James also stood up physically. He won all three of his ground duels and came out on top in his only aerial contest.
No matter where Rosenior lines him up — whether it's at right-back or in midfield — James continues to perform well. And had things gone differently, there could have been a penalty call going his way too.
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