Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Nottingham Forest: Blues Sink to 33-Year Low

Chelsea were one spectacular piece of skill away from setting a new all-time club record.

It was another bleak Premier League outing for Chelsea. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

Chelsea ended their nine-hour wait for a Premier League goal in style, but they were still comfortably beaten 3–1 by Nottingham Forest at Stamford Bridge on Monday afternoon.

The Blues encountered a heavily rotated Forest team in west London, with Vitor Pereira making eight changes from Thursday night’s lineup that beat Aston Villa 1–0 in the first leg of their Europa League semifinal.

Unai Emery was chastised for tinkering with his team so much for Sunday’s duel with Tottenham Hotspur, clearly prioritizing Europe, but there was no such treatment for Pereira, as his reserves put Chelsea to the sword.

Forest were two goals to the good in the blink of an eye thanks to Igor Jesus’s penalty before Taiwo Awoniyi added his second at the start of the second half, courtesy of some excellent work from Morgan Gibbs-White.

Cole Palmer was denied from the penalty spot by Matz Sels before half-time, and João Pedro had a consolation ruled out for offside, but the Brazilian did finally break Chelsea’s duck with a stunning acrobatic effort in stoppage time, which was appreciated by the few Blues supporters that remained.

This defeat means they end the gameweek down in ninth, on a run of six straight defeats for the first time since 1993, while Nottingham Forest are practically safe. It’s FA Cup or bust for the Blues.

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The Moment That Defined the Match

Malo Gusto’s laziness cost Chelsea. | Chris Lee/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

Nottingham Forest’s penalty sequence couldn’t have more neatly summarized a season that’s crumbling before Chelsea’s eyes.

The Blues were already a goal behind at an apathetic Stamford Bridge when Dilane Bakwa, once on the books of Chelsea’s sister club Strasbourg, jinked inside from the right and delivered a teasing cross for Awoniyi at the back post.

Barely 10 minutes later, Chelsea were once again undone by a Bakwa delivery. This time, recovering right back Malo Gusto was at least in the vicinity of Awoniyi, but instead of making a proper effort to prevent Forest’s striker from doubling his side’s lead, the Frenchman lazily pulled Awoniyi’s shirt and jogged off to the touchline as if nothing had happened.

A penalty wasn’t awarded by Anthony Taylor on-field, but the VAR cast a beady eye over the incident and recommended an on-pitch review. Within moments, Taylor awarded the spot kick, with Gusto receiving just punishment for some shoddy defending. Jesus made no mistake from 12 yards.

It was a depiction of Chelsea’s current lack of care and the ill-discipline that has plagued them all season long.

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Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Nottingham Forest (4-2-3-1)

Palmer was denied from the penalty spot for a second time in Chelsea colors. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Robert Sánchez—5.8: Chelsea’s goalkeeper wasn’t to blame early. It was a mess in front of him. Still, a collision with Gibbs-White meant his afternoon’s work was cut short midway through the second half.

RB: Malo Gusto—6.6: You’re just not going to get away with a shirt pull like that with VAR lurking. Gusto’s defending was poor throughout, and only occasionally did he create space for Cole Palmer by getting on the overlap.

CB: Trevoh Chalobah—6.5: Chalobah struggled to settle into Monday’s game, with poor box defending displayed in the opening period. He also struggled to deal with the long ball.

CB: Tosin Adarabioyo—6.4: After performing pretty well at Wembley, Tosin reverted to type in west London. Bullied by Awoniyi when Forest went long.

LB: Marc Cucurella—7.5: Did not enjoy the battle with Bakwa, who has struggled during his first season at Forest. Cucurella spent the majority of the contest trying to get back at the winger, who beat him comprehensively to help create Forest’s opening two goals. Faux rating because he touched the ball last before João Pedro‘s overhead kick.

DM: Roméo Lavia—6.0: Withdrawn from proceedings before the hour mark after a messy midfield showing. It’s not entirely clear why he’s usurped Andrey Santos in the pecking order.

DM: Moisés Caicedo—6.8: Gibbs-White ran off him to create Forest’s third goal, and Caicedo ended the contest in Taylor’s book.

RW: Cole Palmer—5.8: Thomas Tuchel was back at his former stomping ground on Monday afternoon, but he’d left Stamford Bridge concerned about the form of one of England’s potential difference-makers at this summer’s World Cup. Palmer’s penalty miss on the stroke of half-time epitomized Chelsea’s woes.

AM: Enzo Fernández—7.7: Hit the post at 1–0 and looked the most likely to make something happen in the final third in the first half.

LW: Jesse Derry—6.5: The teenager‘s first Premier League start was cut short just before half-time following a nasty clash of heads with Zach Abbott that earned Chelsea a penalty.

ST: João Pedro—7.7: Chelsea’s brightest spark didn’t let his standards completely slip, and his consolation goal was one of the finest inconsequential strikes.

SUB: Liam Delap (45’ for Derry)—6.8: Another clumsy outing for Delap, who simply never looks like scoring a goal.

SUB: Levi Colwill (46’ for Tosin)—6.1: Well, at least he’s back. That’s a positive.

SUB: Andrey Santos (58’ for Lavia)—6.6: The snappiest of Chelsea’s midfielders and has been underused as of late.

SUB: Filip Jörgensen (66’ for Sánchez)—6.1: Wasn’t called into action.

Subs not used: Jorrel Hato, Josh Acheampong, Wesley Fofana, Dário Essugo, Reece James.

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What These Ratings Tell Us

Cucurella was beaten far too easily for the opening goal. | Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

• While there’d be rationale behind keeping Enzo Fernández this summer, despite the Argentine’s comments post-Champions League exit, Chelsea would be wise to cut ties with another outspoken squad member, Marc Cucurella. The busy left back often gives the impression that he’s doing plenty, but his eagerness and aggression merely compensate for sloppy defensive fundamentals. The Spaniard was beaten far too easily for the opening goal. If he wants Barcelona, let him have Barcelona.
• What’s eating Cole Palmer? Is it merely the niggles and knocks that have evolved the once joyous playmaker into the currently meek iteration? We certainly hope so, because the Palmer of two years ago was one of soccer’s most alluring stars. Based on current form, Chelsea’s No. 10 may genuinely struggle to make England’s World Cup squad.

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The Numbers That Explain Chelsea’s Miserable Monday

• Chelsea enjoyed more of the ball and registered 15 more shots, but Forest were far more efficient in possession. They scored three times with six shots, and created more big chances than the hosts (three to two).
• The visitors won the xG battle from open-pay by a margin of 0.37 (1.21 to 0.84).

Statistic	Chelsea	Nott’m Forest
Possession	68%	32%
Expected Goals (xG)	1.93	2.07
Total Shots	21	6
Shots on Target	5	4
Big Chances	2	3
Pass Accuracy	91%	80%
Fouls Committed	12	10
Corners	10	1

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