Stoke boss Mark Hughes stirs the pot insisting Marcos Alonso 'should have been sent off' before being subbed by Antonio Conte in Chelsea defeat

• e-mail

Rival managers Mark Hughes and Antonio Conte clashed over the controversial role of Marcos Alonso in Chelsea's 4-0 win at Stoke.

Alonso looked fortunate not to be sent off after catching Biram Mame Diouf shortly after a late tackle on Joe Allen had earned him a yellow card.

Shortly after the Spaniard was let off with a warning from referee Mike Dean, Blues manager Conte replaced him with Gary Cahill after 59 minutes with the visitors leading 2-0.

Alvaro Morata's hat trick stole the headlines as Chelsea eased past Stoke on Saturday

But Marcos Alonso found the limelight as Mark Hughes claims he should've been dismissed

'The referee has made a call on Alonso. He could have been sent off and should have been in my view,' said Hughes. 'Their manager agreed he was lucky because he took him off.

'Those are the moments you need to go for you. The referee allowed them to stop the game. Chelsea are very much a reflection of their manager in the way they manage the game.'

Conte insisted, however, Alonso wasn't taken off because he risked a red card.

'Honestly it was a tactical substitution because Mark Hughes brought on Peter Crouch and as you know very well we all always suffer with him,' said the Italian.

When it was pointed out that Crouch actually entered the field two minutes after Alonso's departure, the Italian gestured towards his eyes.

'I saw he was ready,' said Conte. 'I was prepared for this substitution in my mind to win the game. We were winning but Crouch coming on is a new situation.

'I preferred to reinforce our defensive line with Gary Cahill and to move Azpi (Cesar Azpilicueta) to wing-back.'

The Stoke boss claimed Antonio Conte's substitution of Alonso was an admission of this, but the Chelsea boss claimed that the switch was tactical as he looked to solidify the result