Chelsea’s struggles continued to deepen this Monday (4), as they fell to a 3-1 defeat against Vitor Pereira’s Nottingham Forest during the 35th round of the Premier League.
This marked Chelsea’s SIXTH STRAIGHT loss in the league, the worst run the club has experienced since 1993.
On a brighter note, Brazilian international João Pedro managed to clinch a moment of joy for himself. After a determined effort, he scored a spectacular bicycle kick deep into stoppage time, ending Chelsea’s goal drought that had lasted for over NINE HOURS (543 minutes). The Blues had failed to score in their previous five matches.
With this goal, João Pedro reached a total of 20 goals for the season, 15 of which were scored in the Premier League.
Hard-Fought Challenges and Medical Interruptions
Nottingham took an early lead just two minutes in, thanks to Awoniyi. Shortly afterward, he won a penalty after being fouled by Gusto, which Igor Jesus converted to extend Forest’s lead to 2-0 in the 15th minute, marking his 15th goal of the season.
As the first half neared its conclusion, a heavy clash occurred between Zach Abbott and Jesse Derry, who was making his debut. This incident resulted in a penalty for Chelsea, leading to a 15-minute medical break, where Derry was the worse off.
Palmer took the penalty, but Sels made an impressive save.
Awoniyi struck again for Forest in the 52nd minute, and after another serious collision, Nottingham made two substitutions, including Gibbs-White, who is a concern for their upcoming Europa League match.
João Pedro had a goal disallowed for offside in the 73rd minute, only to later score with his bicycle kick in the 93rd minute.
Is Nottingham Safe?
The crucial victory allows Nottingham to shift their focus back to the Europa League semifinal as they prepare to face Aston Villa next Thursday (7), having won the first leg 1-0.
This latest win propelled Nottingham to 42 points in the Premier League, placing them in 16th and six points clear of West Ham, currently in 18th place. Tottenham has one point more than West Ham (37), with three matches left for each side.
In contrast, Chelsea remains stuck on 48 points, sitting in ninth place and struggling to maintain momentum in their pursuit of a European competition spot through the Premier League.
The team currently holding the spot for the Conference League in 26/27 is Brentford with 51.
The immediate focus now shifts to defeating Manchester City in the FA Cup to secure a spot in next season’s Europa League.
This article has been translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.