There is an unwritten rule in football that an attacking team will put the ball out if a defender is down, but it’s really down to the referee to stop the game if necessary.
There was a moment of controversy tonight between Chelsea and Villa as Andreas Christensen went down with an injury during a Villa attack, although Chelsea initially managed to get the ball clear.
That clearance would be the perfect moment for the ref to stop the game due to the injury but he didn’t and Villa went on to equalise:
Aston Villa equalise!
Andreas Christensen stays down in the middle of the pitch but play goes and Anwar El Ghazi sneaks in at the back post to make it 5 in his last 5 ?#PLonPrime #CHEAVL pic.twitter.com/f6kBC3kCNO
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) December 28, 2020
Pictures from RMC Sport
The old cliche of playing to the whistle is true and Villa haven’t actually done anything wrong here, but you can guarantee it will be a talking point after the game if Chelsea don’t emerge victorious.