- Chelsea loses to Wolves
- Sterling misses key opportunity
- Jackson defended by Pochettino
Ten minutes into the regulation time, Chelsea supporters in the lower tier of the Steve Bull Stand applauded the substitution of their leading goalscorer, Nicolas Jackson, as Mauricio Pochettino’s squad suffered their fourth consecutive away loss in the Premier League. However, their woes extend far beyond the forward from Senegal’s carelessness, as they were defeated by a Wolves squad that exemplified true teamwork.
Matt Doherty and Mario Lemina’s game-winning goal against Tottenham allowed Gary O’Neil’s squad to extend their unbeaten home record to seven games and equal the London club in points.
Chelsea has missed 36 of 57 large Premier League opportunities this year, the most. Raheem Sterling, despite being as guilty as anyone else in the very dark blue (whose inaugural public appearance was unremarkable), was just as guilty as Chelsea, who suffered their nineteenth league loss of the year, the most of any top-flight club.
Discipline Woes and Pochettino’s Defence at Chelsea
Cole Palmer and Sterling both received their fifth yellow cards of the season and will be suspended for Wednesday’s home match against Crystal Palace, adding to Chelsea’s difficulties. Mauricio Pochettino was also cautioned about the lack of discipline in the dugout. Chelsea has accumulated more bookings than any other team in the division. Despite the visitors’ dominance in possession and first-half opportunities, Wolves merited the win.
“I am extremely devoted to the group,” O’Neil declared. “Despite being a small squad, they are extremely cohesive.”
After fourteen league appearances since joining from Villarreal for £35 million in July, Jackson has scored seven times. However, he appeared to lose focus when Sterling played him in for a simple finish in the first quarter-hour. At his defence was Pochettino, a 22-year-old.
The Chelsea manager stated, “It is always about expectation, how you manage expectation, and setting expectation.” “When comparing Jackson to other strikers his age who are entering a new division, his performances indicate that he is scoring goals”.
The issue at hand does not involve assigning blame to him. I believe you can understand the supporters’ frustration: when we fail to score, the onus is on our offensive personnel. However, my recommendation is to assign responsibility to all of them collectively, as football is a team sport and a group effort; we cannot individualize blame. However, this situation is unique: he is young, we are Chelsea, and the pressure is enormous in the Premier League. There is pressure to perform at Chelsea with the utmost excellence.
Frenetic Action and Missed Opportunities
Similar to the rest of the events of this festive season, the game commenced as if it were its conclusion. It was extremely frenetic and frenzied, and it persisted in that manner throughout. Sterling had sufficient opportunities to have sealed the contest on his own in the opening half.
Wolves were relieved to remain in the game when Lemina’s header gave them the lead early in the second half. However, Chelsea’s lack of efficiency in the penalty area appears to be representative of their overall lack of motivation, as they have gone from streaks of optimism in qualifying for the round of 16 in the Carabao Cup to a current eight-game run of only two victories in regulation time.
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Sterling played well in the first half, but his miss against João Gomes was the most egregious of the encounter. After being sluggish to respond to José Sá’s cross, the winger ran half the pitch to score. He was justified in not passing to Palmer or Jackson to his right if he scored. Conversely, he attempted from an optimal height for the custodian, and Sá successfully made the save.
At this point, the Wolves were arguing amongst themselves, but they concluded the half strongly, with Hwang Hee-chan deflecting Pablo Sarabia’s exquisite pass in the inside-right channel with a shot that just missed the target.
Wolves’ Resilience and Chelsea’s Frustrations
Wolves can rally at Molineux after being outplayed for 30 minutes. They have pulled one past Manchester City, Spurs, and Chelsea, drawn with Aston Villa and Newcastle, and for the first time since March 1970, scored at least once in sixteen consecutive Premier League matches.
They had their tails erect. Toti’s header was expertly saved by Djordje Petrovic, before Lemina, purportedly marking Lesley Ugochukwu, deflected a header from Sarabia’s inswinging corner into the far corner of the goal.
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Chelsea’s frustration increased as, within the first six minutes, three players were issued bookings for dissent. Later, Sterling received a diving-related booking, bringing his season total to 27, three of which were assessed to the coaches.
Wolves scored within one-third of the eleven minutes of stoppage time that were allotted. Benoit Badiashile’s clearance of Hugo Bueno’s cross from the left flank was dreadfully inadequate, and Doherty scored his first Premier League goal since re-joining Wolves in the summer.
Substitute Christopher Nkunku had the opportunity to score on his Premier League debut by heading in Sterling’s cross. However, Chelsea were defeated once more.
