'I'm not sure it's the rules anymore!' - Tuchel baffled by James red card call as Chelsea fight to Liverpool draw

Thomas Tuchel says that he does not know the rules surrounding red cards anymore after Reece James' first-half dismissal saw Chelsea hold on for a 1-1 draw with Liverpool on Saturday.

The Blues were reduced to 10 men when the England international was sent off by referee Anthony Taylor following a VAR check for a deliberate handball on the stroke of half-time, with the full-back having made contact with his upper arm after the ball deflected off his leg.

Tuchel's visitors managed to cling on for a point at Anfield, however, after Mohamed Salah's subsequent penalty cancelled out Kai Havertz' opener - but the manager says he remains perplexed as to the finer points of his defender's exit.

What has been said?

"The red card - I'm not even sure anymore if it's the rules or not the rules," the German told BBC Sport. "You have to accept the decision. He maybe would have changed his mind with moving pictures.

"In the end it maybe would have stayed the same. I don't like early red cards in general because it spoils the game. In the end it was a tough and hard fight. We showed great resilience and deserved the point.

"We decided to stay in a back five. We wanted to stay active and make it hard to create chances. The first 10 minutes seemed endless. The last five minutes I was actually praying we take what we deserved. It was a hard and a tough one, but a very strong second half defensively."

Azpilicueta: Chelsea 'doubly punished'

Blues captain Cesar Azpilicueta concurred with his coach that the call against James was a tough one, and added that he felt his side were hard done by, though he was quick to credit their resolve after they steadied their emotions in the second half.

"Harsh. I feel sorry for Reece. The referee got advice from VAR to give it. He went to the screen to watch one replay.

"We got the double punishment, red card and a penalty - and two yellow cards in the same action. We were angry. But you have to calm down and find a way to fight together as a team. I think the team fought and maybe we had the best two chances in the second half."

The bigger picture

With the spoils shared at Anfield, both Chelsea and Liverpool remain jointly sat atop the table in the Premier League, as they head into the September international break.

James, called up once more to Gareth Southgate's England squad following his Euro 2020 form, will look to put the difficulties of his trip to Merseyside behind him when he joins up with the Three Lions.

Tuchel meanwhile will be left to mull over the two-week break how he will cover for the right-back's likely absence amid a ban, with games against Aston Villa and Zenit on the agenda.