Chelsea put in arguably their worst 45 minutes of the season in the first half of their Premier League game against Leeds United.
Enzo Maresca’s side conceded less than 10 minutes into the match after Jaka Bijol’s header.
Leeds then doubled their lead just before half-time following Ao Tanaka’s incredible strike.
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Before the game, Bijol claimed that Chelsea could beat anyone, with the Blues recently defeating Barcelona 3-0 in the Champions League.
Enzo Maresca manager / head coach of Chelsea during the Premier League match between Leeds United and Chelsea
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Enzo Maresca had to speak to Marc Cucurella, Enzo Fernandez, Liam Delap and Joao Pedro mid-game
With Chelsea performing so badly in the first half, understandably, Maresca tried to tinker with a few things.
During a brief stop in play, BBC Sport journalist Nizaar Kinsella spotted the Chelsea manager trying to give some tactics to Marc Cucurella, Enzo Fernandez, Liam Delap and Joao Pedro.
It did not work, though, as the Club World Cup winners went into half-time 2-0 down.
After how they played against Barcelona and Arsenal, Chelsea supporters would have been extremely disappointed with that first-half display and overall performance.
Next up for Chelsea is another away fixture, with Maresca’s men travelling to the Vitality Stadium to take on Bournemouth.
Enzo Maresca manager/head coach of Chelsea instructs Enzo Fernandez
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Chelsea defence and Enzo Fernandez really disappointing in first half
Maresca made several changes to his defence, and Chelsea paid the price for it in that first 45 minutes.
Benoit Badiashile and Tosin Adarabioyo came in for Wesley Fofana and Malo Gusto, with Trevoh Chalobah shuffling over to right-back.
Badiashile and Adarabioyo really struggled, so it is fair to say that those changes backfired, especially with the latter making such a costly mistake in the second half.
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Josh Acheampong of Chelsea FC arrives at stadium
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Further forward, Fernandez also had a game to forget. The midfielder was at fault for Leeds’ second goal and was outmuscled too easily.
If Chelsea continue to defend like that, they will not be anywhere near the title race come May. That being said, they have defended well in previous games so hopefully it was just a blip. And had Fofana started, that first half may have ended differently.