Pedro Neto avoids red card after Chelsea star’s shoving of ball boy sparks fracas

Anything Eden Hazard can do, Pedro Neto can do better.

Well, maybe not skill-wise, but perhaps when it comes to dealing with ball kids.

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Neto sparked a brief fracas in the dying stages of Chelsea’s 5-2 loss to Paris Saint-Germain when, in an attempt to speed up play, he tried to wrestle the ball off the child.

Net loss

Things quickly took a turn for the worse when Neto lightly shoved the youth, who crumpled to the ground.

Players from both teams ran in while medical staff attended to the child, who remained on the turf.

Eventually the dust settled and Neto escaped without so much as a formal warning from the referee for his conduct.

As for the ball kid, he eventually got back to his feet and the Portuguese was seen offering his apologies.

Neto reacts to ball kid incident

The Chelsea winger, who stressed the incident was out of character for him, even gave the ball kid his match-worn shirt at full-time.

“I want to say the situation that happened on the pitch with the ballboy, I want to apologise,” Neto said.

“I already spoke with him. It was the heat of the moment. We were losing and I wanted to pick up the ball. I gave him a little push and that cannot happen.

“I gave him my shirt and I am really really sorry for that. In the heat of the moment, I wanted to get the ball fast.

“I said sorry about 35 times.”

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Hazard sign

Neto’s brief conflict with the ball kid gave Chelsea fans flashbacks of Hazard’s infamous confrontation during the Blues’ League Cup semi-final against Swansea City in 2013.

Hazard tried to speed proceedings up at the Liberty Stadium, only for ball kid Charlie Morgan to lie on the ball.

The Belgian whiz then proceeded to kick Morgan, who wasn’t going to give up the ball without a fight.

Hazard was sent off for the incident and later charged by the FA with violent conduct.

Luckily that was as far as the incident went as Morgan, who later went on to found a £150million vodka business, elected not to press charges.

Parisian Blues

Neto’s brouhaha with the ball kid was just one of many low-lights for Chelsea in the French capital on Wednesday.

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Blues boss Liam Rosenior rolled the dice and started Filip Jorgensen between the sticks ahead of Robert Sanchez.

It would be Jorgensen’s third start for Chelsea in the Champions League this season, but it became a night to forget for the Dane as the visitors shipped an alarming five goals.

PSG’s third goal will prove especially haunting for Jorgensen, as his careless pass from the back was intercepted by Bradley Barcola on the edge of Chelsea’s 18-yard box.

The ball eventually fell to Vitinha, who deftly lobbed a desperate Jorgensen in the 74th minute.

From there, it was one-way traffic for PSG as a late double from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia left Chelsea needing to overcome a three-goal deficit in the second leg, which will take place at Stamford Bridge on March 17.