Chelsea’s title hopes were given a severe hammering on Boxing Day as Fulham came back from a goal down to grab all three points with a late comeback and a last gasp winner.
Rodrigo Muniz’s 96th minute strike crowned the Cottagers as Kings of the West End as Marco Silva’s team moved up to seventh place in the Premier League table, while Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea were left to lament what might have been. The excellent Cole Palmer gave the Blues an early lead with a sublime finish after he ghosted past a couple of Fulham defenders, but Chelsea failed to pull away and when Timothy Castagne headed the ball across goal Harry Wilson nodded home. There was a nervous wait for VAR as there was a Chelsea claim for a foul on Pedro Neto in the buildup but there was nothing in it and Fulham were level.
Jadon Sancho almost grabbed the winner for the Blues but Bernd Len made a sensational stop and, while Chelsea strained for a winner they were vulnerable on the break… and Fulham struck like a cobra. Sasa Lukic fired the ball into the danger area and Muniz, in acres of space, made no mistake
The Fulham bench and the away end went crazy as Maresco and his men were stunned, and no wonder as this was the Cottagers’ first win at Stamford Bridge since 1979. The Premier League 2024 betting odds have taken a lot of notice of Chelsea’s charge in recent weeks but this was a serious blow, while the result has re-ignited Fulham’s quest for a European place.
In other Premier League 2024 news Europe chasing Newcastle United and Aston Villa met, and Eddie Howe’s Magpies are making their move after they picked off a European rival with a comprehensive 3-0 home win. A third league victory on the bounce took the Geordies up to fifth place in the table, leapfrogging the Villains in the process, as Unai Emery’s team dropped to ninth. Anthony Gordon gave Newcastle an early lead with a brilliant curler and then Aston Villa’s task became doubly hard when striker Jhon Duran left some studs on Fabian Schar and he received a straight red card.
Aston Villa have failed to win on Tyneside in 17 attempts and when Alexander Isak made it 2-0 with his seventh goal in six matches the game was up, and midfielder Joelinton added some gloss to the result in injury time. This was a statement result from Howe’s men and another good day for Isak, who has moved up to fourth in the race for the Golden Boot, with ten goals from 15 games. Newcastle look capable of launching a top four challenge while Villa look in danger of drifting out of contention.
Dyche picks up an impressive Hat-Trick
This SBOTOP writer is a big fan of Everton manager Sean Dyche having seen the coach, previously known as ‘the Ginger Mourinho’, deliver ten great seasons as Burnley manager. And now he’s doing the business at Goodison Park where, as Toffees boss, he has picked up a third draw in succession.
Okay, in isolation that doesn’t sound so spectacular but when you look at who Everton have faced it certainly does. A 0-0 draw away to Arsenal and another goalless stalemate, this time at home to Chelsea are pretty good; but the icing on the cake has to be a 1-1 draw away to Manchester City. The Sky Blues shocking run has extended to just a single win in 13 games, in all competitions, and they are as good as out of the Premier League title race. And there was a huge slide of luck in City’s goal as Bernardo Silva’s strike took a wicked deflection to beat Jordan Pickford. But Pep Guardiola’s side are woefully short of confidence and they failed to stretch their lead against a stubborn but limited opponent, and they paid the price as Iliman Ndiaye scored his third goal of the campaign.
And City striker Erling Haaland’s miserable run continued as he had a late penalty saved by Pickford.
Elsewhere, Forest against Spurs was one of the eye-catching clashes on Boxing Day as Nottingham boss Nuno Espirito Santo took his current team to face one of his old clubs, and the visitors came out on top as Antony Elanga scored the only goal of the game. Forest climbed up to third place as their incredible season continues, and this was the first time they had won four top flight games in a row since 1995.
Spurs continue to languish in the bottom half of the table after a fourth league defeat in five games, and next up they have a testing game at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
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