Ralph Hasenhuttl saw captain James Ward-Prowse sent off for Saints at Chelsea and insisted: “He knows he didn’t help us.” Asked whether Ward-Prowse was apologising for his part following the defeat,
Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “Yeah, sure. He’s the captain and he knows he didn’t help us today. But, yes, I mean no reason to be angry about this. We showed really some good performance and it’s a pity we couldn’t finalise it – that is the pity.”
The 26-year-old looked set to drive his team on to at least avoid defeat at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, having slotted home from the penalty spot to make it 1-1 against the European champions. But having cancelled out Trevoh Chalobah’s early opener in the capital, Ward-Prowse was then shown red for a foul on Jorginho 13 minutes from time, following a VAR check. It was just the second time he had been sent off in his career – the first in a 2-1 defeat at Sunderland in the Premier League back in 2015.
Following Ward-Prowse’s sending off, Thomas Tuchel’s side netted through Timo Werner and ben Chilwell to wrap up all three points. Ward-Prowse is now set to also be hit with a three-game ban following the dismissal.
