Ice-cool Cole lifts lifeless Chelsea
Peerless Palmer eases pressure on Pochettino
ON A cold and grey day, in a cold and grey season, Chelsea still have the comforts of home and the reassurance of knowing Cole Palmer’s blips are measured by minutes and not matches. Where would they be without him? Two points lighter from this game alone.
He was the difference here, just as he has been the difference between a woeful campaign for Mauricio Pochettino and one with sporadic bursts of optimism.
In this instance, that meant the conversion of a first-half penalty for his ninth goal in a Chelsea shirt and a restoration of some morale to the collective after the indignities of Tuesday’s Carabao Cup defeat at Middlesbrough.
Time will tell where that loss ranks in the context of their season, but it is no coincidence they were beaten on a night when Palmer underperformed in front of goal. It has become that simple — if he doesn’t have a good game, nor do they. That is how much they rely on him.
In this one, he got them over the line just when Stamford Bridge was close to turning sour. The mood was starting to crackle, but amid such pressure Palmer buried the kick and salvaged a win from another lifeless team performance. That penalty was one of only three shots Chelsea got on target all day.
For Pochettino, a defeat would have made life particularly awkward, and that could have been the outcome had the referee and VAR ruled more decisively against Malo Gusto in the first half. His studs-up lunge into Willian’s left shin at 0-0 warranted a red card, but only a yellow was shown. Fulham coach Marco Silva was incensed, and rightly so.
With that reprieve, Chelsea had the luck on which they could build a fourth straight home win, but we know enough about their false dawns to avoid talk about corners turned.
Given that they face Boro, Aston Villa, Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham in five of their next six games in all competitions, it would pay to be cautious.
If they ride those out in respectable fashion, it is possible for the Chelsea narrative to shift, but for now they are in the midst of a surreal meander in form, with the oddities of this club best illustrated by the presence of a film crew during the match.
They were stationed behind Pochettino’s bench to shoot a promo for a spy movie that has been produced by one of Todd Boehly’s companies — a sight which supported the idea that the football is often a sideshow in the wider Chelsea drama. Perhaps it was heartening for Boehly that some folk in his orbit can reliably follow a script.
As for the team, it was largely the same group beaten by Boro. Pochettino made only a single change, with Armando Broja brought in as a lone striker and Palmer shifted backwards from a false nine to a more favoured position on the right of the trident. He would go on to be a bright presence for Chelsea across the first half, as were Raheem Sterling and Conor Gallagher, but they often struggled to deliver a final ball of any great quality.
For 47 of the 48 minutes played in the first half, no one from the home side managed a shot on goal.
If there was the whiff of a positive for Pochettino, it was that Chelsea controlled midfield, which is no easy thing in the presence of Joao Palhinha, but the familiar pain is they did nothing with the possession.
The risk in that scenario was a Fulham break, and they did have a couple of chances. The first of those was a harmless low roller from Andreas Pereira, but the second, created from a delicious ball across the six-yard box by Antonee Robinson, was far more troubling.
Harry Wilson met the delivery at the far post and Djordje Petrovic
did well to block the shot. That was a warning of sorts but at the close of the half, Chelsea were able to make their mark.
The penalty was awarded when Sterling unbalanced Issa Diop on the turn and coaxed the defender into a risky challenge. With contact made on his trailing leg, Sterling won the opportunity for Palmer from 12 yards. He nailed it for his fifth goal from the spot this season.
A word here on Sterling: he has had an impressive and productive season with five goals, but it is tempting to wonder how much nicer it would look had he not handed responsibility for penalties to Palmer early in the campaign.
As a spectacle, the second half was far more fun, with Chelsea losing some control and the jeopardy rising. Among it all, both Sterling and Gallagher hit the frame, but Chelsea’s vulnerabilities were also showcased. It was very much a game that could have gone against them; once again it was Palmer who ensured it did not.