Chelsea head into the final international break of 2026 off the back of a disappointing defeat after they were beaten 1-0 by Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Sunday in the Premier League.
The Blues have now lost three of their last four matches in all competitions, counting a shootout defeat to Liverpool in the League Cup, which is less than ideal for Xabi Alonso and his coaching staff.
Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith
Enzo Le Fee scored the only goal of the game on Wearside when he tucked his penalty into the bottom corner in the 38th minute, sending Mike Penders the wrong way.
There is some debate to be had around how the home side were awarded a penalty, though, as Levi Colwill was adjudged to have fouled Brian Brobbey.
Why Levi Colwill was unfortunate against Sunderland
Chelsea's central defender was caught on the wrong side of Brobbey when chasing the centre-forward into the box and appeared to clip his heels, which caused the referee to point to the spot for a penalty.
On the face of it, that action is a stonewall penalty and the England international deserves criticism for his poor defending in that particular situation, costing Chelsea the game.
However, replays showed that Brobbey had a tight grip on Colwill's shirt and pulled the central defender to the floor alongside him, as both players appeared to foul each other at the same time.
Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith
The Englishman, who otherwise won five of his seven duels, was unfortunate to give away the penalty and may have been awarded a free-kick for the Dutchman's shirt pull on another day.
That was not the only refereeing decision that went against Chelsea in the first-half, though, as they also had a penalty shout of their own waved away when Cole Palmer went down.
Why Cole Palmer should have had a penalty against Sunderland
The left-footed attacking midfielder surged towards the Sunderland box before being wiped out by Luke O'Nien, who came from the blind side and slid in, missed the ball, and made knee-on-knee contact with the Blues star.
The referee saw nothing wrong with the challenge, despite it being a clear foul, and VAR decided that it took place outside of the box, which is why they did not intervene.
Replays suggest that the knee-on-knee contact carried into the box, making it a penalty, but the VAR officials came to a different conclusion at the time.
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Vs Sunderland Cole Palmer
Minutes 90
Pass accuracy 91%
Chances created 2
xA 0.07
Shots on target 1
Possession lost 17x
Duels won 1/4
It was far from a vintage display by Palmer, who did not create any 'big chances' for his teammate, but the game could have been completely different if he had been awarded a spot-kick.
Worse than Palmer and Colwill: 3/10 Chelsea star is heading for the bench
Whilst Colwill could be criticised for his role in the penalty and Palmer could be criticised for his lack of creativity, neither of them were the worst performer on the pitch for Chelsea.
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Instead, Morgan Rogers was among the worst performers on the park for the Blues in their defeat to Sunderland, as he struggled as the left-sided number ten.
The £117m summer signing from Aston Villa has produced six goals and four assists in all competitions this season, but he should be boldly dropped by Alonso after a 3/10 showing at the Stadium of Light.
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He had the best chance of the game for Chelsea in the first half when he rose well to meet Marco Palestra's cross, only to get his header all wrong, sending it well wide of the post.
Rogers could have put his side 1-0 up with that 'big chance' to find the back of the net, which could have completely changed how the rest of the game went.
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Vs Sunderland Morgan Rogers
Minutes 90
Touches 64
Possession lost 24x
Key passes 0
Big chances created 0
Successful crosses 0/6
Successful dribbles 1/6
Big chances missed 1
Duels won 7/20
On top of missing the biggest chance of the game for Chelsea, the former Villa star also lost possession a staggering 24 times without creating a single chance for his teammates.
The 24-year-old attacking midfielder did not find a teammate with any of his six attempted crosses, whilst also failing in five of his six attempted dribbles, and he came off the pitch with zero key passes to his name.
REUTERS/Scott Heppell
He was even worse than Palmer, who created two chances for the team and only lost the ball 17 times, because of his complete lack of impact at the top end of the pitch.
The fact that he lost 13 of his 20 physical duels on to pof his struggles with the ball at his feet only added to what was already a disappointing display, which is why he should be dropped by Alonso after the break.