Caballero is a penalty specialist and former Man City player, so has therefore trained against many of their players for a long time. Those two things combined made him the best choice for a shoot out, and Kepa has disobeyed. Anybody who believes this story that has been put out about it being a misunderstanding is a fool - look at Sarri’s reaction. The guy is apoplectic and goes to walk down the tunnel, and not one Chelsea player goes over to ‘clear up’ the situation let alone the goalie himself. In fact only one player goes over to talk to Kepa at all, David Luiz, and at no point does he gesture that he should go off or even point to the bench as if to say he should at least speak to the manager. He simply covers his mouth while saying a few words and then trots off. Hardly the behaviour of somebody trying to sort the issue, more like telling his mate to stay put and do what he wants.
Some of the nonsense I’ve heard on the radio and seen online since it happened has been truly staggering. People saying he has the right to finish the game, he’s their number one, if the player says he’s fine and is confident you have to listen to them etc. No, you respect the sport as well as your boss by obeying a substitution. Many goalkeepers over the years have been brought on just for penalties, including at World Cup’s let alone domestic trophies. Sometimes your reserve goalkeeper is weaker at everything else compared to your first choice except that one thing, and if that is the case then you’re going to want your specialist on the pitch. Imagine a world where a renowned penalty taker who perhaps isn’t fully fit is on the bench, and they go to bring him on with 30 seconds left so that he can take one kick, and the player they want to sub off flatly refuses and says he isn’t having it. Not only would nobody find anything odd or unacceptable about trying to bring such a player on, it simply wouldn’t happen that the player being subbed refuses. There is nothing weird or stupid about what Sarri tried to do, only in the arguments of the people trying to excuse Kepa. He’s not only been hugely disrespectful to everything and everyone, but he’s now opened a can of worms that might be difficult to put the lid back on. How many more players will try this now?
As for Sarri, he had a chance in front of the world to put a nail in player power and failed. Everybody saw what was going on and was open mouthed, seeing just how bad Chelsea’s problems are in this department, and if he’d insisted Kepa come off then combined with the world seeing what had gone on he would have had so much support and sympathy that it would have hugely strengthened his position. As it stands he crumbled and now he’s done for. He should’ve demanded the referee make the player leave the pitch when he went over to ask what he wanted to do, and if he’d still ignored it then the referee would’ve booked him, and subsequently sent him off if he continued to refuse. That way he gets to bring the goalie on for an outfield player who is bottom of the list and he gets what he wanted anyway, while simultaneously being able to point at the player and go “He got himself sent off as well as ignoring instructions, this is what I’m dealing with.” He caved in and as a result he’s lost not only his current job, but has tarnished his own reputation at other clubs who will see that and realise he isn’t strong enough to manage top players.
The whole thing is a total shambles, but not for one second is there an ounce of truth in that statement, which the club has forced them both to vouch for in terms of fire fighting. A dark day for football as a whole.