Paul Merson fears Chelsea face an uphill battle to qualify for the Champions League after Liam Rosenior’s side threw away a two-goal lead against Leeds United.
The Blues looked on course to make up ground in the race to cement a top five position in the Premier League when Cole Palmer’s penalty doubled their lead at Stamford Bridge.
In-form Joao Pedro had set Rosenior’s side on their in the opening period but Chelsea undid all their good work in a crazy six minute spell after the break.
Lukas Nmecha’s spot kick drew Leeds back into the contest, before an almighty defensive mix-up saw Noah Okafor bundle home an equaliser that could well prove crucial in Leeds’ fight to beat the drop.
Chelsea did manage to fashion one gilt-edged chance to snatch victory but Cole Palmer, unbelievably, fired over from almost underneath the crossbar.
That setback, coupled with Manchester United’s last-gasp equaliser against West Ham, represented a missed opportunity for Chelsea who now face a daunting run of fixtures.
Just as worryingly for Merson, the former England international believes that for all the sparking attacking play under Maresca, this current Chelsea side are still far too inexperienced and brittle when put under any semblance of pressure.
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He told Sky Sports: ‘Chelsea haven’t changed from when Maresca was there. They can’t put a 90 minute performance together. They were brilliant first half, they were like the Harlem Globe Trotters. Palmer, Santos, Ezno Fernandez, Perdro, the movement with Estevao.
‘Second half out again brilliant then all of a sudden that happened. They haven’t got that experience when it goes 2-1 and then 2-2 the next 15 minutes were wasted.
‘They haven’t got anyone to grab the game or tell the players to calm down and we’ll get another chance. They got one and it fell to Palmer and side footed it over the bar it happens to the best.
‘Chelsea have got some very, very difficult fixutres after the next one. It’s going to be a real big fight for them. If Chelsea can get in the Champions League positions after the run-in they’ve got I’ll hold by hands up and say fair play.’
Rosenior, meanwhile, admitted it was a ‘bitter pill to swallow’ having been so in control of what had been a one-sided contest.
‘Two key moments in the game that we don’t take care of,’ said Rosenior. ‘We don’t stay calm. How the play gets there, we make a few poor decisions in the way we press and we give away a penalty.
‘I can’t remember Leeds having a shot or a moment in the game. Some of our football in possession, our press and our energy was everything I wanted to see. That makes it even more of a bitter pill to swallow that we haven’t won the game.’
Leeds’ equaliser owed as much to Bogle’s tenacity in outmuscling Chelsea’s defence as it did to the Blues’ own hesitancy in dealing with the danger, though Rosenior believed his team should have had a free-kick.
Chelsea's upcoming fixtures
Hull City (A) – FA Cup – Friday, February 13
Burnley (H) – Premier League – Saturday, February 21
Arsenal (A) – Premier League – Sunday, March 1
Aston Villa (A) – Premier League – Wednesday, March 4
Newcastle United (H) – Premier League – Saturday, March 14
‘The lad handballs it,’ he said. ‘It affects my players in that moment, they think it’s a handball, they switch off, we don’t clear the ball and they score. Then for 25 minutes it was wave after wave of attack.’
Under Rosenior there have been encouraging signals of a more dynamic approach to possession that has made Chelsea more threatening, and here again the ball moved with urgency, particularly through midfield where his side constantly seemed to outnumber Leeds.
In the end, it counted for little as old frailties were once more brought to the fore.
‘We have to make sure we take care of moments and be professional,’ said Rosenior. ‘It’s not about reacting to setbacks. You’re always going to have a spell in they game when you’re not on top.
‘The ridiculous thing for us is that they’ve managed to score two goals in a five-minute period when for the other 90 minute we were by far the better team.’
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