Thibaut Courtois has risked the wrath of Antonio Conte after questioning the Chelsea manager’s tactics during their 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on Sunday.
Conte made the surprise decision to replace Pedro with Eden Hazard at Old Trafford with more than 15 minutes remaining in the match and the score at 1-1.
Jesse Lingard scored the winner for United less than two minutes later and Courtois has questioned Conte’s decision to take off Chelsea’s most influential attacker.
“I have no explanation for the substitution of Hazard,” Courtois told Belgian outlet Play Sports, via Metro. “I had not expected him to take off but it is a choice of the manager. He must explain. I can’t look into his head.
“Players like Eden should have 90 minutes on the pitch. He can always bring something extra offensive.”
Courtois now risks backlash from Conte as the Italian has already shown he is not afraid to drop big players if they cross him, as shown with David Luiz this season.
The Brazilian defender has fallen down the pecking order at Chelsea after questioning Conte's tactics in the wake of their defeat to Roma in the Champions League group stages in October.
Luiz has only made five appearances since their 3-0 defeat in Italy but it would be a huge surprise if Courtois was given similar treatment, especially as Chelsea are struggling to convince the Belgian to commit his long-term future to the club with Real Madrid circling.
Only David de Gea (15) has kept more clean sheets in the Premier League than Courtois (13) this season.
