Chelsea fought back in their second half against Aston Villa at Villa Park on Saturday night. For the second game in a row the Blues conceded inside just four minutes as John McGinn’s scuffed shot was turned into his own net by Marc Cucurella.
For all Chelsea’s possession and attacking intent, all they had to show from the first half was a disallowed Nicolas Jackson goal and a header off the post from the same player.
Once again, their problems in both boxes would hurt them, with Morgan Rogers scoring a second for the home side to give them a two-goal advantage going into the break.
Chelsea came out for the second half with more intent, added impetus and started pressing higher up the pitch. And they got their reward when they won the ball back high and Noni Madueke swept home for 2-1.
Chelsea were swarming all over Villa and there was a moment that summed up Cole Palmer’s growing importance to the team, not just for goals, but for his impact on his teammates.
Moises Caicedo was brilliant in the middle of the park, but he was fouled inside his own half, with a boot being left on his shin, which appeared to hurt as he rolled around on the floor. He had already gotten the foul, but clearly wanted more.
Palmer raced over to take the set-piece, but before he did he gestured in Caicedo’s direction to get up quickly, with the Blues 2-1 behind. Palmer then held out a hand to hoist his teammate up and they got on with the restart.
Conor Gallagher scored a superb second with ten minutes to go to level the scores with a goal that would have raised smiles with Chelsea’s bitter rivals Tottenham. Spurs are chasing Villa in the race for the final Champions League spot and could have slipped nine points behind them had Villa secured all three points in the clash in the Midlands.
