Chelsea FC Continue To Do Nothing Right, Boost Arsenal And Man City
I say it in jest, but Chelsea FC continued to make all the wrong moves this afternoon, despite an 89th minute Cesc Fabregas equaliser.
Chelsea FC managed to escape with a draw this afternoon, as an eager West Ham stumbled across the finishing line at Stamford Bridge. While there was (limited) euphoria at the Blues’ late equaliser, upon reflection they have done nothing but push Arsenal and Manchester City towards top four security.
Cesc Fabregas was the man of the match for Chelsea, as they relied on him to rescue them. The Spaniard hit the back of the net twice as the hosts came from behind on two occasions to earn a 2-2 draw.
There was not much optimism in the air heading into the contest and this was not helped by an early breakthrough for the Hammers. Manuel Lanzini took a long-range shot with 17 minutes on the clock and it had enough curl to beat Thibaut Courtois.
The Blues were then able to grab a goal in first half stoppage time. Fabregas converted a free-kick in the third extra minute, providing a much-needed morale boost heading into half time.
With a quarter of an hour gone in the second period, Slaven Bilic dipped into his substitutes to make an inspired change. Just one minute after his introduction, the lumbering Andy Carroll stuck the ball in the Chelsea goal with a left-footed effort. At this point it seemed as if West Ham would take the victory and move ahead of Man City into fourth place.
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However, there was late drama when referee Robert Madley awarded the Blues a contentious penalty with the clock winding down. Michael Antonio was penalised for bringing down Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Fabregas stepped up to score his second set-piece of the contest in the 89th minute.
While it may be encouraging to see Chelsea battle until the last, they actually did nothing but advantage their rivals. The 2015/16 campaign is dead and buried for the Blues and they have nothing to play for. This desperately late equaliser has only afforded City and Arsenal some breathing space.
Should Manuel Pellegrini’s men defeat their neighbours tomorrow, West Ham will be four points behind them and five behind Arsenal, making the prospect of Arsene Wenger failing to qualify for the Champions League less likely.
Of course, you should always want your club to win, but given the circumstances I don’t think many would have cared if Madley had kept his whistle by his side.
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Oh well, Chelsea just can’t do anything right this season, eh?