Before their humiliating 3-1 loss to Nottingham Forest’s second-string team on Monday, Chelsea’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League already looked to be over.
Calum McFarlane’s side were on a run of five consecutive defeats in the Premier League, which has now stretched to six.
They are currently 10 points behind fifth-placed Aston Villa with just three games left to play. If the Blues’ chances of qualifying for Europe’s elite competition were not over before the Forest match, they are now.
Thiago Silva is all of us right now…
What’s the first thing that needs to change at Stamford Bridge?
Again, even before the Forest defeat, Chelsea had simply given themselves too much to do in the race for Champions League football.
Yet, according to BBC Sport journalist Nizaar Kinsella, some figures at the club were still talking about the possibility of playing in the Champions League next season prior to Forest’s visit to Stamford Bridge.
After being embarrassed by Vitor Pereira’s back-up team, there is no way they can still be envisioning it. The club accomplishing its main goal of Champions League qualification this season now seems impossible.
Chelsea’s players continue to be criticised for the team’s failures, but Jamie Carragher has slammed the Chelsea decision-makers, stating that all of the club’s issues start from the top.
How do you think these Chelsea players performed against Nottingham Forest?
Here's what we think! 👉
Chelsea player ratings vs Forest
Photo by Chris Lee – Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
There is now a strong possibility that Chelsea will not qualify for any European football competition.
Sitting ninth in the Premier League table, they are not currently in a European spot and only have three games to turn things around.
Those final three fixtures are against Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland. McFarlane’s men could easily end up losing all three of them, especially with Spurs finding a bit of form under Roberto De Zerbi and fighting for their lives.
The north London club have won back-to-back games under the Italian, beating Villa over the weekend and Wolverhampton Wanderers the weekend before that.
Join Our Newsletter
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox