Inside Pedro Neto's Chelsea apology as Liam Rosenior sends strong selection warning to fix discipline issues

It was Maresca's problem to deal with, now it's down to Rosenior.

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Liam Rosenior has responded to Pedro Neto's Chelsea apologised after the dressing room was addressed following Sunday's defeat to Arsenal.

Chelsea fell to a 2-1 defeat at the Emirates after being unable to deal with Arsenal's known set-piece threat, which saw all three goals in the game come from corners.

It was a frustrating 90 minutes for Chelsea in north London, with the Blues showing spells of threat and looking to claim at least a point.

Instead, it ended in disappointment and further annoyance after they finished the game with 10 men.

Pedro Neto was shown two yellow cards in the space of around five minutes. The first for dissent after Arsenal re-took the lead, before taking down Gabriel Martinelli as Arsenal countered following a poor cross delivery from the Portugal international.

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It was a second red card in a row for Chelsea after Wesley Fofana's dismissal against Burnley.

Head coach Rosenior was visibly fuming post-match at the Emirates. Chelsea will be without Neto for Wednesday's trip to face Aston Villa, who are also battling for a Champions League qualification spot.

Ahead of Wednesday's clash, Rosenior confirmed Neto offered an apology to the Chelsea dressing room after being sent off.

"Pedro has apologised to the group," confirmed Rosenior on Monday. "We miss him for Wednesday. I just need to see an improvement in the behaviour now. It's not just Pedro.

"We've had bookings, people speaking about dissent. We've had needless bookings in terms of fouls. If we are to improve and get to where we want to be, we have to make a conscious step now to make sure it doesn't happen again."

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Rosenior has previously alluded to requiring players he can rely on. It has now extended from concentration in key moments to discipline amidst the recent return of successive red cards - a problem under previous head coach Enzo Maresca.

The current head coach has now warned his Chelsea players that they must improve otherwise they will not be selected between now and the end of the season.

"I think the first thing, you pick players who are showing that improvement," added Rosenior. "I can't afford to go for a season every two or three games with a red card. It's just not possible.

"I need to see improvement in that. I need to adjust my team selection based on who is showing those capabilities."

Chelsea are heading to Villa Park needing a win to give themselves a huge lift - it would be their first league win in four matches after draws to Leeds United and Burnley prior to the Arsenal loss.