Chelsea lost 3-1 to Leeds United at Elland Road, which hurt them and dropped them to fourth place in the Premier League table. Enzo Maresca’s team couldn’t handle how hard the home team played, and the win helped Leeds get out of the relegation zone and end a tough four-game losing streak.
The game showed a big difference in efficiency: Leeds United took advantage of their chances even though they had a lot less of the ball. Chelsea had 71.4% of the ball, but they couldn’t break down the Yorkshire team.
They only had two shots on target and an expected goals (xG) figure of 1.1. In contrast, the hosts were brutal in transition, scoring an impressive 2.82 xG from 17 shots to silence their critics.
Leeds took control in the first half, quickly going up by two goals. Jaka Bijol scored the first goal with a well-placed header, taking advantage of Chelsea’s failure to clear their lines. The lead grew even bigger soon after, when Ao Tanaka hit a powerful shot that left the goalie with no chance, and the crowd at Elland Road went wild.
The visitors tried to come back early in the second half. Pedro Neto scored from close range to make it 2-1, giving the Blues a brief chance to get a point. But a costly mistake by one person killed that hope. Tosin Adarabioyo lost the ball in a dangerous area, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin took advantage of the mistake and tapped it into an open net to win 3-1.
The result is a wake-up call for Chelsea, who are now in fourth place in the standings. Leeds, on the other hand, moves up to 17th place, three points ahead of the bottom three. Leeds will play Liverpool next in the Premier League, and Chelsea will go to the Vitality Stadium to play Bournemouth.
Chelsea’s defensive mistakes are a cause for concern
Enzo Maresca’s team lost at Elland Road, raising questions about how solid their defense is and how well they can turn possession into clear chances. Even though the Blues had the ball most of the time, their defense was weak, and the manager saw his team give up three goals to a team that had lost four games in a row before that.
The way the third goal happened will be especially upsetting for the Chelsea manager. The defensive mix-up with Tosin Adarabioyo hurt the team’s chances of getting back into the game just as it looked like they were gaining ground after Neto’s goal. Before their trip to Bournemouth, Maresca needs to quickly get his team back on track to fix their lack of cutting-edge and defensive focus.