Day 18: Chelsea

With less than a week until Christmas, we are now reaching the top spots in the Premier League. Today, we are looking at Chelsea’s season so far as we continue our Premier League Christmas Countdown.

I think Chelsea fans will be really pleased with how their season has gone so far, considering the unknown of Enzo Maresca and the ridicule that they have received over recent years from fans of other top six clubs. They are currently in second place, with a bit of daylight between them and Arsenal in third, but can they hold on to that advantage?

A Crazy Start

Chelsea’s opener was a home match against champions Manchester City, so Maresca was being thrown into the deep end of Premier League football. Manchester City were just a level above the Blues and walked away with a 2-0 win. Next was a visit to Wolves and thanks to a second half hattrick from Noni Madueke, Chelsea won 6-2, which was just the start of their crazy results.

Noni Madueke vs Wolves:

6 shots (most)
5 shots on target (most)
3 goals (most)

He really hates Wolverhampton. pic.twitter.com/V3tTVp8OVF

— StatMuse FC (@statmusefc) August 25, 2024

The beginning of September was’t too manic, as they drew against Crystal Palace 1-1, beat Bournemouth 1-0 and West Ham 3-0. The last game of September was another stand out result, as they beat Brighton 4-2 at home, with all six goals coming in the first half, and Cole Palmer scoring all of Chelsea’s four. By this point he was a staple in everyone’s FPL teams.

Close Matches

October through to November saw Chelsea take part in a lot of close matches in the Premier League. This started with a 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest. Chelsea edged the stats in that game, but Forest were more clinical and punished Chelsea, even with 10 men. The Blues then travelled to Anfield to face in-form Liverpool getting beaten 2-1.

"He was a player we didn't do enough to stop" 💬

Eddie Howe was impressed by Cole Palmer's performance for Chelsea against Newcastle last weekend, with the two sides playing each other tomorrow again in the Carabao Cup ⬇ pic.twitter.com/JVF0pf5YSZ

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) October 29, 2024

Their next match also finished 2-1, but this time it was in Chelsea’s favour against Newcastle at home. Cole Palmer’s goal early in the second half was enough to give Maresca’s men all three points. November started off with a 1-1 draw against Manchester United but continued in a similar way as Chelsea also drew 1-1 with Arsenal. These points were crucial to Chelsea if they wanted to challenge for the top four as they stopped, especially Arsenal, getting away from them.

Big Wins

Following their two draws, Chelsea got back to winning ways against Leicester as they beat them 2-1. Chelsea really dominated the chances and should have been more convincing in front of goal, but in the end, three points is three points. December saw the score lines really pick up as Chelsea started with a 3-0 win over Aston Villa, whose winless run was extended to eight games.

A 5-1 hammering of Southampton followed in midweek, with five different Chelsea players getting on the scoresheet, and Southampton’s Jack Stephens seeing red for the second time this season.

Have you EVER seen anything like that in the Premier League? 😳

Marc Cucurella slips not once, but TWICE in the build-up to Tottenham goals, prompting him to change his boots! 👟🫣 pic.twitter.com/jhORjfmiGC

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 8, 2024

The Blues visited Tottenham next in another classic between the two sides, winning 4-3 despite being two goals down due to Marc Cucurella slipping twice. After conceding the second goal, the Spaniard put on new boots, which seemed to help, as he provided an assist just six minutes later. Their most recent match was a 2-1 win over Brentford.

What Next For Chelsea?

The rest of their fixtures before the new year are, on paper, quite easy. Next up is a trip to Goodison Park and following that they play Fulham and Ipswich Town. Should they win all three of these, then they’ll be in a good position to finish in the top four and remain at least four points ahead of third placed Arsenal.

Player of the Season

Everyone who said that Cole Palmer was going to be a one season wonder, are now eating their words. The midfielder has 11 goals and six assists this season, more than a goal contribution per game. Nicolas Jackson, Moises Caicedo and Noni Madueke have all been good, but Palmer has been a level ahead of them.

Season Rank: A

End of Season Prediction: 3rd

Check out our Christmas Countdown article from yesterday.