Blue Armour

Feel bad for Acheampong, though. Barely gets minutes and when he does it's in a RB position which he's not great at.

Reece James coming on.

Not sure if Gusto & Acheampong have switched flanks for the rest of the game, but this looks MUCH better. At least one of them is playing in their best position now

Acheampong got skinned there. Thankfully ball hit Sanchez

Good thing is Bournemouth are vulnerable. Between Palmer, Estevao and Delap (and Joao Pedro coming on) I hope we can keep the goal threat going

No surprise. We need to outscore them in this match. Simple as that. We aren't protecting any clean sheets with this back line.

Well done Enzo and Garnacho

Delap and Palmer combining well there. Need see more of that from Delap.

Caicedo has been way below par since returning from suspension. Seems like all that comparison with Rice has messed up his mojo.

Just need Palmer and Estevao to turn up the style. I have little confidence that this back 4, and an off color Caicedo will do much to prevent more goals. We need to be more aggressive

Okay, not his preferred position. He is NOT as good at RB as at CB. Anyway, pointless to argue at this stage Time to equalize

They will give a penalty. Well done Estevao

That should be a penalty

Called it. And I dont like it. Gusto at LB. And unfortunately Acheampong playing out of position is hardly any better. Would have like at least one of them playing in position And yeah, Bournemouth scores.

If Cucurella is not fit to start, I'm fearing that Maresca will once again go with Gusto at LB, and maybe play Acheampong or Chalobah out of position at RB (because James might need resting).

Could have traded the both of them for 1 single WC center back Badiashile is barely fit to play more than 5 games a year, and Disasi is just a waste of space at this point. Genius recruitment from the club.

Top of the table club wants to get reinforcements to become even better, while the club barely in top 5 with a weakened squad and no shirt sponsor thinks everything is fine. Every time I see Eghbali on the screen I keep thinking of his ridiculous statement of how the old Chelsea were not competitive in either a sporting sense or financial sense. Yet he and his cronies have assembled a team that is struggling to keep the club within UEFA FFP rules, has failed to secure a permanent shirt sponsor, and is struggling to make progress on the results from last season. The major achievement is the low wage bill and low average of the squad. Great resale value., which is no doubt their number 1 priority.

Yeah, this has all the makings of an ugly (as if it wasn't already) situation. Palmer showing discontent. Its not the first time he has expressed annoyance against Maresca (remember his comments after the conference league final) .The fact we go onto lose the match against Villa after his sub doesn't help Maresca. Yes, Palmer was below par in that match but the subs that came on afterwards hardly covered themselves in glory. Maresca on the other hand is probably at war with the board, and to be fair, Eghbali & co. have left him short-handed with their transfer strategy. No defensive reinforcements, and a lot of money spent on spent on squad-level wingers and underperforming strikers. Unfortunately, none of this gives Maresca any leverage.

"Worked with them at Man City" Ah yes, the most shining hallmark of any top class player. And he's a U-21 international too!

Both of our strikers struggle in tight spaces, Joao Pedro maybe a bit better in that regard. Neither of them are strong aerially either. If they had an aerial threat, things would have been better. Even an over-age Giroud would do a better job. Delap for all his height, strength and being called an old fashioned English forward, can't really convert anything aerially to take advantage of crosses in the box. Directors didn't look at the qualities each striker would bring when making signings, and instead looked at the most value for money deals on paper.

Has more yellow cards than goals + assists. Must be some kind of Stoke city heritage.

No side has dropped more points from winning positions this season than Chelsea (13). Shows the weak mentality of both players and manager in terms of how to control a game.

Caicedo will stick around. Palmer might choose to jump ship if Chelsea dont secure top 5. And IMO., I don't think the club will mind it if Palmer decides to force a move. Clearlake & co., will have dollar signs in their eyes thinking about potential transfer fees associated with that move.

Well that explains the Gusto sub. Putting him at LB though, was stupid. James had played well at LB before, and he should have moved him there allowing Gusto to play in his natural position. As for Badiashile starting this game, the less said the better. Crackpot directors and subservient manager will continue to rotate this lineup till the end of the season, regardless of these results., until a top 5 finish comes under risk.

Wish the media would question him on these decisions, but that wouldnt be a newsworthy story