Leeds surprise Chelsea after Palmer‘s worst career miss

Seven wins out of the first nine matches in all competition gave Liam Rosenior and his men a fair amount of confidence. The fans quickly forgot Enzo Maresca and all doubts they had about the inexperienced ex Hull and Strasbourg boss when he started to deliver wins. To be fair, the Blues did have a light schedule in the Premier League and played relegation strugglers West Ham and Wolves. So when Leeds arrived at Stamford Bridge, another win was expected. After all, Leeds have won just two of their last 25 away Premier League matches and haven't‘ recorded an away win against Chelsea in the 21st century. But this team, unlike West Ham and Wolves has shown resilience and mental toughness so far this season and they recorded some good results recently which were continued with a surprising 2-2 draw against the Blues.

Unlike the Elland Road home games, where Leeds is thriving, this was another match where the Whites didn‘t show much, especially since their best scorer Dominic Calvert-Lewin was out. But they kept battling even when the score was 2-0, and used Chelsea‘s lack of concentration at the back to score two goals in the space of just six minutes. But all that would not be enough if it wasn‘t for Cole Palmer. Until the 94th minute, the England international was one of the best players, with a goal and an assist and then he somehow managed to miss the entire (and empty) goal from just two meters away!

The Joao Pedro goal was the only important thing in the first half. Both clubs attacked and tried, but it was just a bunch of run-ins which ended with a lost ball, or a shot wide of the target, or a blocked shot. The Brazilian forward was the best player on the field, and Cole Palmer was just behind him. After all, Chelsea‘s midfielder assisted Pedro for the oppening goal, had a decent shot from distance himself and also created another opportunity for the Brazilian. Ahead of the first goal, Palmer found Joao Pedro who was on the verge of offside and used his quickness and dinked the ball over Darlow for the lead. The other partnership of these two players happened in the 35th minute, when the England international assisted to the Brazilian who tried a volley, but the ball went just near the bar.

Palmer continued his assisting magic in the 50th minute and this time Estevao was the recipient but his show was rather week and went two meters from the bar. But Joao Pedro was the main actor again six minutes later, when he entered the penalty box but was pushed from behind by Bijol. The referee pointed at the penalty spot and Palmer made it 2-0, which should have effectively ended the game for Chelsea, considering Leeds' poor display in first hour of the game. But Moises Caicedo gave the visitors a lifeline in the 67th minute when he tripped Bogle inside the penalty area and all of a sudden Leeds scored. Only six minutes later it was all square after a strange action which started with Leeds‘ Bogle‘s handball, and then finished when Acheampong and Sanchez failed to clear the ball, allowing Okafor to steal it and and put it into the empty net. Chelsea woke up around ten minutes from the end but Leeds had luck with that incredible Cole Palmer miss and took a valuable point in their relegation fight.

PREMIER LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 26

Tuesday

Chelsea - Leeds 2-2 (1-0)

/Pedro 24, Palmer 58 (p) - Nmecha 67(p), Okafor 73/

Everton - Bournemouth 1-2 (1-0)

/Ndiaye 42(p) - Rayan 61, Adli 64/

Tottenham - Newcastle 1-2 (0-1)

/Gray 64 - Thiaw 45+5, Ramsey 68/

West Ham - Manchester United 1-1 (0-0)

/Soucek 50 - Sesko 90+6/

Wednesday

22.30: (1.95) Aston Villa (3.50) Brighton (3.90)

22.30: (1.60) Crystal Palace (4.00) Burnley (6.50)

22.30: (1.37) Manchester City (5.15) Fulham (8.00)

22.30: (1.75) Nottingham Forest (3.70) Wolverhampton (5.40)

23.15: (5.40) Sunderland (3.70) Liverpool (1.75)

Thursday

21.00: (4.90) Brentford (3.60) Arsenal (1.75)

***odds are subject to change***