Chelsea came from behind and were then pegged back ourselves in a breathless first half at Stamford Bridge, but couldn't add to the scoreline after the break as we ended 2025 with a draw against Bournemouth.
The action all came in the first 45 minutes during a first half played at a furious pace, with plenty of chances at both ends of the pitch.
It was the visitors who struck first when David Brooks scrambled in at the second attempt from a long throw-in, but we were soon level. Estevao Willian was clipped in the box by Antoine Semenyo and Cole Palmer slotted in from the penalty spot.
We than took the lead ourselves, when Enzo Fernandez fired a brilliant finish into the top corner, only to see parity restored by Justin Kluivert from another Bournemouth long throw into our area.
It was Chelsea who were pushing hardest for a winning goal in the second half, as the Cherries seemed to run out of gas after those early exertions, but despite those efforts there would be no further goals as the points were shared.
The selection
Robert Sanchez remained between the posts, but there were three changes to the back four in front of him. Trevoh Chalobah retained his place, but Josh Acheampong, Wesley Fofana and Malo Gusto came into the side. Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez paired up in midfield again, with the Argentine captaining the side, but Liam Delap replaced Joao Pedro to spearhead our attack. The striker was supported by Cole Palmer, Alejandro Garnacho and Estevao Willian.
Explosive start
It was the final Chelsea game of 2025 and the fireworks came early this year, with Stamford Bridge hosting its own display as the players made their way onto the pitch and the build-up peaked moments before kick-off.
The visitors got us under way from the centre and lumped it long, but that only resulted in handing us possession via a throw-in. From there Delap charged down the wing and earned an early corner, which was whipped in dangerously by Estevao, only to bounce all the way through and clear.
However, Bournemouth quickly regrouped and made their threat from crosses and set-pieces apparent. Unfortunately, it was a threat we couldn’t get to grips with before the visitors took the lead.
There had already been a couple of dangerous long throws before one launched from the Bournemouth right was flicked on into trouble. Sanchez did well to save David Brooks’ initial header, but couldn’t prevent him from prodding the rebound over the line.
Before long, Chelsea were given a way back into the game. Estevao jinked his way between two players and into the box with a lovely piece of skill, before being bundled to the floor by a clumsy challenge from Antoine Semenyo. After a lengthy pitchside review, the referee awarded the penalty, Palmer stepped up and slotted it low to the left, beyond the dive of former Blues keeper Djordje Petrovic.
Frantic football
There was now 15 minutes on the clock and the scores were back level at the Bridge. The threat posed by Bournemouth was still present, with Sanchez coming to the rescue on three occasions as we struggled to contain the Cherries’ overlapping runs into the final third.
At the other end, Garnacho was a whisker away from getting on the end of a low Delap delivery, in what was shaping up as an open, end-to-end first half. We were the next to take advantage of that and move into the lead with a brilliant goal.
It started when Acheampong did excellently to win the ball back high up the pitch and recycle possession. Fernandez laid it off for Garnacho on the left and continued his run into the box to receive the ball back. He opened up his body with his first touch, cleverly delayed his shot to take Alex Scott out of the game, then smashed a perfect finish into the top corner.
The goals weren’t finished there, though, and Bournemouth were level again inside five minutes. Again our undoing was a long Semenyo throw flicked on at the near post, this time from their left, met by Justin Kluivert, who got there just ahead of Sanchez to score.
There continued to be chances at both ends, with Bournemouth fizzing a couple of efforts just wide and Estevao bouncing a header just wide from Garnacho’s cross, but after the early flurry of goals it remained 2-2 as the players headed in for the break.
Settling down
After such a breathless opening 45 minutes, which probably suited Bournemouth more than the Blues, Maresca's side attempted to calm things down and exert more control on the game as play resumed. To that end our head coach turned to his bench, with Reece James and Pedro Neto replacing Acheampong and Garnacho for the second half.
There was little sign of things calming down just yet, though, even if the two goalkeepers were able to get a small breather and the Blues seemed more comfortable. Gusto escaped a VAR review for handball, while Delap headed over on the counter and Marcos Senesi dove in to clear the danger from inside the six-yard box after another darting Estevao run.
We looked to turn the screw in pursuit of the goal which would give us the lead once more, with Joao Pedro introduced from the bench and Estevao rallying the crowd after his low drive from the edge of the box was tipped around the post by Petrovic.
Pushing for the winner
In contrast to the frantic back and forth of the first half, the tension was building the longer we went without a goal in the fifth. After four at either end in the opening 45 minutes, it felt like one more might be all it took to decide this match one way or the other in the second half.
It was Chelsea who were doing most of the work to try to make that happen, pushing forward in pursuit of that crucial next goal, while Bournemouth looked like they were beginning to run out of steam as the game entered its final stages.
Estevao in particular was coming into his own as the game went on, giving Cherries right-back Alex Jimenez a torrid time with his quick feet and acceleration, and the Brazilian's running resulted in a series of Blues corners, but we couldn't make them count. It was Estevao who led the counter which ended in Joao Pedro's shot being deflected away from danger, and that was as close as we came to grabbing all three points during the last 10 minutes.
What is next
That is it for this year, but there is only five days to wait until we kick off the action in 2026. That first game of the new year comes at the Etihad Stadium, where we face Manchester City in the Premier League at 5.30pm on Sunday 4 January. We then have a much shorter away trip to take on neighbours Fulham at Craven Cottage at 7.30pm on Wednesday 7 January.
The teams
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Acheampong (James h-t), Fofana, Chalobah, Gusto; Fernandez (c), Caicedo; Estevao (Gittens 90+2), Palmer (Joao Pedro 63), Garnacho (Neto h-t); Delap (Santos 87)
Unused subs: Jorgensen, Badiashile, Tosin, Buonanotte
Scorers: Palmer pen 16, Fernandez 23
Booked: Caicedo 4
Bournemouth (4-2-3-1): Petrovic; Jimenez, Hill, Senesi, Truffert; Brooks (c) (Adli 78), Scott; Kluivert (Smith 90+2), Tavernier, Semenyo; Evanilson (Unal 82)Unused subs: Dennis, Diakite, Araujo, Soler, Rees-Dottin, Kroupi
Scorers: Brooks 6, Kluivert 27
Booked: Tavernier 84
Referee: Sam Barrott