Leading 4-0 at home to half-time against a dejected Everton side, Monday looked set to be one of those rare nights when Chelsea’s maturity and discipline could escape scrutiny.
What happened instead was that referee Paul Tierney awarded the home team a penalty in the 64th minute, with Noni Madueke and Nicholas Jackson teaming up to snatch public embarrassment from the jaws of unqualified success. It was a reminder to never underestimate Chelsea’s ability to kidnap. -He engages in a three-way physical fight with Cole Palmer over the right to take it away.
To give permission The Athletic A light-hearted walk through of the silliest series of events seen so far in this season’s Premier League.
lunge
Maro Gusto holds the ball with the detached air of a pizza delivery driver nearing the end of his shift, blissfully oblivious to the drama that is about to unfold.
What happens next would make more sense if he did. was I grabbed a large piping hot pepperoni. Maduke and Jackson rush towards him desperately with their arms outstretched. Madueke’s stride is shorter than Jackson’s, allowing him to accelerate and get to the ball first, but at a cost…
grab
… Madueke’s momentum puts him just past Gast, while Jackson’s good judgment of space and speed allows him to cup the ball with both hands.
The whole world is watching as if Jackson is now in control of the situation, but Maduke, who was depressed after scoring the winning penalty from Palmer in the final minute of the home game against Manchester United 11 days ago, I know the strength of The most important thing here is the will, not the quality of the technique.
block
Perhaps a little satisfied with his early success, Jackson made a critical mistake. He allows Madueke to get inside before him and use his body to block the striker’s access to the ball.
This is a textbook winger move, but the great Eden Hazard would insist on using Maduke’s butt more aggressively here to keep Jackson at bay. Nevertheless, it worked and Jackson gave the ball away.
discussion
Jackson is now at a significant physical disadvantage and resorts to verbal attempts to stake his claim. Madueke interrupted his rebuttal by pointing to her chest, perhaps in a strong rebuke. he He has the ball for himself, not some other guy named Noni Madueke.
Note also the poetic framing of the shot above a fan banner paying tribute to Chelsea’s greatest ever captain, John Terry. He is the very man who would not have supported this nonsense at all.
walk and chat
Madueke moved back towards the penalty spot and showed great natural technique defending the ball with his strong left flank. Jackson followed suit, and the two became more and more active.
Emotions have reached a stage where outside intervention is required, ideally by someone of the age to become a father to one of the parties.
elder statesman
Just on cue, Thiago Silva arrived on the scene and tried to reason with his misguided teammates.
As he holds Madueke and Jackson in a loose but firm embrace, his eyes seem to say, “It’s time for a change.” But his body language suggests he’s speaking to Jackson of the two, which may inadvertently strengthen confidence that Madueke will find his way here. There is sex.
run with ducks
Silva, Gusto and Madueke appear to be trying to surround Jackson, cutting off all his escape routes and softening the devastating mental blow of not being allowed a free shot that could have put Chelsea up to five points.
But he had an old trick up his sleeve. He bends down as if fixing his shoelaces, then backs away and spins away, simultaneously signaling contempt and surrender.
Silva and Gusto left Maduke alone with the ball in Everton’s penalty area, setting the stage for the climax of this tragedy.
rightful heir
Palmer finally got back on his feet after being fouled on the penalty, but this time he approached Madueke, accompanied by Chelsea’s captain Conor Gallagher on the pitch. Gallagher’s face looks more tired than angry, but he remains firm and strong, showing no signs of faltering.
By tucking the ball under his left arm, Maduke is able to evade Palmer on his right, but his most impressive technique is yet to come…
old switcher
Madueke slowly backed away, waiting for Palmer to reach for the ball with his left hand, then move the ball to his right hand in a casual, behind-the-back dribbling motion that any NBA point guard would be proud of. move it to But this gives Gallagher a chance to intervene…
captain’s vote
Gallagher, realizing his time for words was over, simply put his hand on the ball. Madueke is able to do this with minimal resistance because she is momentarily distracted by something outside the shot. Is it a bird? Is it an airplane?
desperate dash
No, it’s Neymar from Senegal!
It turns out Jackson had only given his team-mates a false sense of security by walking away, and now tries his luck once more by entering the penalty area late. The only thing keeping the situation from reaching WWE-level farce is the fact that Jackson was unable to procure a folding chair before his surprise reappearance.
push away
Jackson’s charge was the tipping point for Palmer to finally lose his patience and, picking up the ball with his right hand, Chelsea’s designated penalty taker nudged the striker with his left. Remarkably, Madueke still seems to think he can stay in contention and talk his way into winning a penalty.
What is never at issue here is the confidence of young people.
final stage
Gallagher, in full nightclub bouncer mode, stands in front of Palmer, acting as a physical barrier to his two teammates and pushing Jackson and Madueke away.
Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford inched away from the goal line in the hope of disrupting Palmer’s mental preparation, but his English colleague and Chelsea player made sure to do it properly for him. I discovered that.
Despite all the shenanigans of his team-mates and Pickford’s attempts to call into question the placement of the ball on the spot, Palmer scored the penalty.
Television footage of the celebrations showed Madueke having to convince Jackson to go along with the rest of the team to congratulate Chelsea’s top scorer this season. Head coach Mauricio Pochettino was glaring at him from the line.
“Other players wanted to take it, but it’s 4-0 so it makes sense,” Palmer later told British broadcaster Sky Sports of the match. “But I ended up taking it because I’m a penalty taker and I wanted to take it.
“We’re trying to show that everyone wants to take responsibility. We may have gone a little overboard with arguments and stuff, but everyone wants to help. That’s a big deal. “We were laughing and joking about it,” the manager (Pochettino) told us now.
Pochettino was unimpressed by the on-field altercation (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Pochettino was less forgiving in his post-match comments.
“The players know…the club knows that Palmer is a penalty taker,” he said. “I’m very upset about this situation. People are watching the game in every country and you can’t send footage like this.
“I would like to apologize to the fans. Discipline is the most important thing for a team. It is a team sport. I will not accept this kind of behavior. I will be very strong. It will never happen again. I promise you, you can’t act like a child. That’s unacceptable. We don’t deserve to talk about this.”
Pochettino’s anger downplayed the comical value of the incident, but it was an appropriate response. Penalty discussions like this don’t happen with a full-fledged team where Chelsea hope to become that kind of team again sooner or later.
It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened at Stamford Bridge this season, but it should be the last.
even deeper
Cole Palmer vs Everton: Shades of Eden Hazard and goal of the season candidates
(Top photo: Katherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)
