Our Scout Notes from Tuesday’s matches continue as we focus on the 2-2 draw between Chelsea and Bournemouth.
CAICEDO BAN – GOOD NEWS FOR HAALAND & CO?
The match came to life early, with Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo (£5.7m) was booked for a foul within four minutes.
The booking marked the Ecuadorian international’s fifth yellow card of the Premier League season, leading to an automatic one-match ban. He will serve the suspension on Sunday when Chelsea travel to the Etihad Stadium to take on title contenders Manchester City in Gameweek 20.
From the twentieth competition match onwards, the suspension threshold for a yellow card increases to ten. That made the match against Bournemouth the last chance for Caicedo to rack up five bookings and earn a suspension at this stage of the season.
Enzo Maresca skipped his post-match interviews due to illness, while assistant Willy Caballero addressed the media. The former goalkeeper said this:
“We are very frustrated because it was the first mistake of the match and it was close to us. We looked at the foul more than once and it doesn’t look like yellow. But it is done now, so we are going to miss a very important player. We will have to start thinking who will be the player who will replace Moi and of course it is a big loss, but it is the same as when we miss Cole, when we miss Liam (Delap), when we miss any player, because they are all very important for us. – Willy Caballero
Caicedo’s suspension is not good news for Chelsea, but his absence could increase the appeal for those considering becoming the Manchester City striker’s captain. Erling Haaland (£15.1 million).
FIFTH START IN A ROW – BUT MORE MINUTES CONTROLLED – FOR PALMER
Just under ten minutes after the controversial booking, the Bournemouth midfielder arrives David Brooks (£5.0m) pounced on a rebound to open the scoring.
Chelsea responded quickly. Stephen (£6.4m) drove into the box to win a penalty on his first Premier League start since Gameweek 14.
Cole Palmer (£10.3m) calmly slotted the penalty past the former team Djordje Petrovic (£4.5m), who got a hand to the ball but could not stop Palmer from leveling the score.
That was Palmer’s fifth consecutive Premier League start since returning from injury, although they averaged just 65 minutes. His substitute in the 62nd minute was received with boos.
”Of course every supporter wants to have their best players on the field and we also want to have the best players on the field. “But Cole is coming off a long-term injury, so in this case we need to find the right substitutes for the match and also take care of the health of our players because we want them in every match for the long period and for the rest of the season.” – Willy Caballero on Cole Palmer’s withdrawal
Eight minutes later Cole Palmers goal, Alejandro Garnacho (£6.4m) slipped a pass through to Enzo Fernandez (£6.4m), who fired into the top right corner to put Chelsea 2–1 ahead.
ARMATURE SWING THREATENING – BUT THE ROTATION CONTINUES
FPL managers may have been eyeing Chelsea with interest because of the upcoming matches:
The Blues’ Gameweek 20 trip to Manchester City doesn’t look like an ideal starting point, but the run that follows is much more appealing.
Matches against Fulham, Brentford, West Ham and Wolves offer plenty of opportunities. All four sides have struggled to find defensive consistency this season, which should put Chelsea firmly on the radar.
As a result, many managers will likely focus on Gameweek 19’s goalscorers as the safest routes given their recent minutes.
But not many Chelsea players will escape some form of benching in the coming weeks; the hope will be that those breathers come in the semi-finals of the FA Cup, EFL Cup or Champions League.
John Pedro (£7.2 million), Pedro Neto (£7.3 million) and Ree James (£5.7m) were all on the bench here, just to illustrate the point.
Trevo Chalobah (£5.6m) at least kept his record of starting in every league match he was available for in 2025/26.
NOT SEMENYO’S LAST BOURNEMOUTH GAME?
There was some doubt as to whether that was the case Antoine Semenyo (£7.7m) would start the match due to his rumored move to Manchester City.
That uncertainty prompted thousands of FPL managers to sell him before the Gameweek 19 deadline.
However, his long throw played a key role in Bournemouth’s equalizer. A deflection helped Justin Kluivert (£7.0 million) netted his second goal of the season.
The FPL assist still went to Semenyo, taking his season total to nine goals and five assists.
Attention now turns to Semenyo’s minutes in the future. Full-time scenes suggested the Ghanaian might be saying goodbye. However, manager Andoni Iraola expects to have him for Gameweek 20.
“This one at Stamford Bridge was not Semenyo’s last game.
“I think he’s playing against Arsenal, yes. He needs to recover because we’re playing Arsenal at home in three days, against the top of the league.”
OTHER NOTES
The draw leaves Bournemouth without a league win in the last ten games. With Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton and Liverpool next, that run could stretch even further.
Chelsea also continues to work. Maresca’s team has only achieved one victory in the past seven matches. They had six big chances against the Cherries in this game, conceding three David Brooks (£5.0 million).
However, a gentler series of fixtures follows, offering a chance to steady the ship.
Gameweek 19 saw Bournemouth defender Mark Senesi (£4.9m) collect defensive contribution points for a sixth straight game. That consistency puts him at the top of the DefCon leaderboards among all defensemen in the game.
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