Pope Kept Burnley In It.
Chelsea dropped points at home for the second time this season and Burnley have their goalkeeper to thank for it despite Chelsea's dominance.
Thomas Tuchel's men dropped points at home against a resilient and determined Burnley side after going ahead with Kai Havertz's goal before a late surge saw Burnley rally round to equalize through substitute, Vydra. Chelsea would blame themselves for missing many opportunities to stay ahead but Nick Pope was impressive for Burnley and kept them in the game. The game ended 1-1 and it was 2 points dropped for Chelsea and a valuable point gained for Burnley.
Hudson Odoi almost gave Chelsea the lead with a double chance after his shot inside the box was saved by the goalkeeper and the rebound fell to him again but he somehow missed the target with his second attempt.
Chelsea played on the front foot so early on and Christensen almost got on the score sheet after Hudson Odoi found him with an inviting cross into the box but his header was steered off target.
In the 13th minute, Ross Barkley almost picked out the top left corner of the net with a lovely effort just outside the box after Hudson Odoi found him. It was a lovely effort but he missed by a margin.
Chelsea kept knocking and if not for Nick Pope who came to the rescue to deny Chelsea in the 28th minute but there was nothing he could do in the 34th minute after a brilliant cross from James found Havertz inside the box and he powered home his brilliant header to give Chelsea a well deserved lead in the game.
Chelsea started the second half as they started the first and Thiago Silva also came close with a brilliant header in the 50th minute after he was found in the box but his header slipped the outer part of the post on its way out. Chelsea had so many opportunities to put the game to bed but it wasn't happening. Ross Barkley ran the show and was pulling the strings with Hudson Odoi and Reece James with Havertz showing good promise for Chelsea.
Chelsea's frustration increased as Pope denied Reece James in the 64th minute and Barkley should have kept his shot down in the 73rd minute. There is no doubt, Chelsea kept bombarding and hammering Burnley just to get the second goal but it didn't come. They haven't found a way to get that extra bite against a stubborn and resilient Burnley side.
As though Chelsea knew the missed chances would come back to bite them in the end which was why there was urgency to their game and it did in the 80th minute despite Chelsea having the better chances, Burnley pegged Chelsea back after Rodriguez was found in the box and he unselfishly picked out Vydra with a header and Vydra bundled the ball into the back of the net to make it 1-1.
Burnley should have won it right at the death in the 91st minute when Rodriguez was sent clear on goal. He should have had a shot at goal instead but he blew the chance as he didn't and that chance went begging as he was forced to the side of the pitch with that threat nullified. Same with Vydra that was sent clear in the 94th minute. He hurriedly took his volley and it was miles off target, shockingly even though he had defenders breathing down his neck.
The game ended 1-1 and Chelsea would be disappointed because they had all the chances to take the lead as they dominated the game from start to the finish.
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