Chelsea entered the 35th round of the Premier League under immense pressure. They were 10 points behind Aston Villa, who were in fifth place (having already played their 35th match), and had to win to keep their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League alive.
Nottingham Forest rested several key players to conserve their energy for the Europa League semi-final this week. But that doesn’t mean the visitors will give up against Chelsea.
Just two minutes into the match, Nottingham Forest opened the scoring after a momentary lapse in Chelsea’s defense. From the right wing, Bakwa delivered a perfect cross for Awoniyi to leap high and head the ball into the home team’s net.
Having conceded a goal too early, Chelsea were forced to push forward in attack. In the 11th minute, the post denied Enzo’s beautiful shot, signaling a day of bad luck for Chelsea.
Indeed, just three minutes later, Chelsea conceded a penalty after Malo Gusto pulled Awoniyi’s shirt. From the penalty spot, Igor Jesus didn’t miss the opportunity to double the lead.
But the most traumatic moment for Chelsea truly came in the 44th minute, when young Jesse Derry collapsed on the pitch after a horrific collision with Zach Abbott of Nottingham Forest.
In an aerial challenge in the Nottingham Forest penalty area, Derry jumped first, controlling the ball, and Abbott followed suit.
The heads of both dogs collided violently. But because Abbott jumped up afterward, he had the advantage in the impact, causing serious neck and head injuries to Derry.
The match was temporarily halted for about 10 minutes while the medical team provided first aid to Derry. The 18-year-old was given oxygen and truly went through a life-or-death struggle. Eventually, he was stretchered off the field.
The referee determined that Abbott had committed a foul in this incident and awarded Chelsea a penalty. Palmer converted the penalty in the 45th minute plus 10 seconds, more than 10 minutes after the collision.
And then the English star’s shot was saved by goalkeeper Matz Sels. Chelsea’s terrible first half ended with Nottingham Forest leading by two goals.
And the bad luck for Chelsea didn’t stop there. In the 52nd minute, Nottingham Forest scored their third goal through Awoniyi, assisted by Gibbs White.
In the 66th minute, their goalkeeper Robert Sanchez had to leave the field due to injury after a collision with Gibbs White. And just a few minutes later, Joao Pedro’s goal was disallowed by VAR for being a few centimeters offside.
It wasn’t until the third minute of added time that Chelsea scored a consolation goal with a spectacular overhead kick from Joao Pedro.
Too many unfortunate events converged on a haunting matchday for Chelsea. Ultimately, they lost 1-3 and are now effectively saying goodbye to their dream of qualifying for the Champions League next season.
After 35 matches, Chelsea have only 48 points, 10 points behind Aston Villa in fifth place, with only three rounds remaining in the season.
Chelsea’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League now lie in a passive position. Aston Villa must secure fifth place in the Premier League until the end of the season and also win the Europa League.
In that case, the Champions League spot for the fifth-placed team would be given to the sixth-placed team. Currently, Bournemouth holds this position and is four points ahead of Chelsea.