West Ham to appeal Fabian Balbuena red card in Chelsea loss

West Ham are to appeal the controversial red card shown to defender Fabian Balbuena against Chelsea on Saturday, the PA news agency understands.

Balbuena was sent off by referee Chris Kavanagh after he caught Blues full-back Ben Chilwell with his studs as he cleared the ball upfield.

Kavanagh did not initially blow for a foul but the incident was brought to his attention by VAR.

The official reviewed the footage on the pitchside monitor and then decided to show a straight red card to the Paraguayan centre-back.

Hammers manager David Moyes called the decision “rank, rotten” after his side’s 1-0 defeat by their top-four rivals.