Chelsea suffered a 4-2 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday, shipping four goals for the second time in a week. The Blues took an early lead at home but instantly threw it away, losing a second game in four days.
Cole Palmer was one of the few players who could hold his head high, but Moises Caicedo was not. Mauricio Pochettino hooked half his outfield players during the game but didn’t see much change from the substitutions.
Chelsea relinquished their lead within minutes
Palmer put the Blues ahead in the 19th minute, slotting a one-on-one past Jose Sa after Caicedo picked him out. Wolves responded straight away, however, with Matheus Cunha seeing his deflected effort wrong-foot Djordje Petrovic.
Caicedo lost the ball in the build-up and unwittingly played a part in Wolves’ second goal before the break. Rayan Aït-Nouri beat Caicedo to Pedro Neto’s cross and saw his shot deflect in off Axel Disasi.
Chelsea were ahead mid-way through the first half but trailed as the half-time whistle went. The Blues had no answer for Wolves’ fast-paced attacks down either flank.
Things got worse in the second half
After the break, Raheem Sterling had a big opportunity to halve the deficit but fired wide. Palmer brilliantly picked out Ben Chilwell who cut the ball back for Sterling, but he couldn’t find the target.
Around the hour mark, Cunha would bag his second goal of the day and Neto was heavily involved once more. Running down the right flank, he cut the ball for the onrushing Cunha who fired a first-time effort home.
Malo Gusto would be hooked by Pochettino late on, but not before he gave away a penalty. Cunha, who has dangerous all afternoon, dribbled past Gusto before being fouled as he tried to catch up. The talented 24-year-old stepped up and took the spot-kick, bagging a deserved hat-trick for a brilliant showing.
Thiago Silva scored late from a set piece, but the game was already over. The result sees Chelsea slump to 11th in the Premier League table, being overtaken by Wolves. They’ve now lost 4-1 to Liverpool and 4-2 to Wolves only days apart, so it’s a bad week for Mauricio Pochettino’s men.
Next up is a trip to Aston Villa for their FA Cup fourth-round replay…
In other news, Malang Sarr’s proposed move away from Chelsea falls through on transfer deadline day
