Summary
Well done to Burnley. They played to their strengths: organised, resolute defending and were ruthless in the first half, snaffling their chances from set-pieces. They will be playing in the Premier League next season, and that’s a brilliant effort from where they were at the end of 2018, second bottom with 12 points from 19 games.
Chelsea are far too one-dimensional. Hazard is their only reliable outlet and with Kante and Hudson-Odoi going off, they just didn’t know how to break Burnley down. I can remember only two saves that Heaton made in the second half. What they are badly missing is a world-class No10 to operate in those tight spaces at the top of the box. How Chelsea fans wish they could have a Juan Mata (2012-13 edition) in their side right now. God knows what’s going to happen if they lose Hazard, and aren’t able to replace him due to the transfer embargo.
Thanks for reading and for your emails and tweets. See you next time. Bye!
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Sean Dyche speaks!
Handbags, bumbags, manbags, I didn’t see much of what happened at the end, I was out applauding out fans. That’s 28 points in 16 games, I think the players have been magnificent.
We have to be resilient. But 44 goals is the record number of goals we’ve scored in the Premier League. I think this has been an excellent season in terms of where we were, and the injuries we’ve had. Like anyone, we try and build. We tried to be more attacking but the confusion we had, and the injuries, we had to go back to basics. We’ve got a running wage bill of £58m, I’m not sure if any club has less than us. To get to 40 points is a big marker. The first half of the season was very tough on everyone.
That’s a great result for Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester United, who all had a poor weekend themselves.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 35 | 59 | 88 |
| 2 | Man City | 34 | 65 | 86 |
| 3 | Tottenham Hotspur | 34 | 29 | 67 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 35 | 21 | 67 |
| 5 | Arsenal | 34 | 25 | 66 |
| 6 | Man Utd | 34 | 15 | 64 |
| 7 | Everton | 35 | 6 | 49 |
| 8 | Watford | 34 | 0 | 49 |
| 9 | Leicester | 35 | 1 | 48 |
| 10 | Wolverhampton | 34 | -1 | 48 |
| 11 | West Ham | 35 | -10 | 43 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 35 | -5 | 42 |
| 13 | Newcastle | 35 | -9 | 41 |
| 14 | AFC Bournemouth | 35 | -13 | 41 |
| 15 | Burnley | 35 | -18 | 40 |
| 16 | Southampton | 34 | -17 | 36 |
| 17 | Brighton | 34 | -21 | 34 |
| 18 | Cardiff | 35 | -35 | 31 |
| 19 | Fulham | 35 | -43 | 23 |
| 20 | Huddersfield | 35 | -49 | 14 |
Read Dominic Fifield's match report
A few more scuffles on the touchline after the final whistle, mainly between the backroom staff. Antonio Rüdiger, out of Chelsea’s match-day squad with injury, is among the chief instigators.
Full-time: Chelsea 2-2 Burnley
Boos ring out around Stamford Bridge. Chelsea do climb into the top four with that point, but they will feel like it is two dropped, having lead here 2-1. Burnley are all but safe: nine points clear of Cardiff (and with a +17 goal difference) with three games left.
90+5 min: Burnley win a free-kick deep in Chelsea territory, much to Kovacic’s frustration and the Croatian is booked for dissent. There’s a few handbags between the two teams, with Giroud wading in to separate McNeil and Azpilicueta. I think Sarri has been sent to the stands for marching down the touchline.
90+4 min: I’d say 2-2 was a fair result, Chelsea have not created a single good chance in this second half. Burnley have defended magnificently and Chris Wood should really have scored a third for the visitors.
90+2 min: Cleared easily, and Pedro is booked for a handball to stop a Burnley counter-attack.
90 min: Five minutes added on here. Burnley have been relatively comfortable for the past 10 minutes. Chelsea win a corner, here come the cavalry.
88 min: Barnes has been magnificent for Burnley up top, holding the ball up when he can, and has beaten David Luiz and Christensen in the air more often than not.
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86 min: “Watching the game and was struck by Higuain’s furious reaction to being subbed,” emails Sam King. “Got me thinking if those of us who operate in more typical workplaces would, or do, act in similar fashion. I know for sure that if my boss said I could leave the office 15 minutes earlier than scheduled, the last thing I’d do is kick my chair in objection - more likely, I’m jump for joy and sprint to the pub.”
84 min: Ben Mee there, with his 145,936th header to clear Burnley’s lines. Man of the match, no doubt about it.
82 min: Burnley are now camped on the edge of their own area, happy to simply hack the ball away. With Giroud now on, Chelsea are pumping cross after cross into the box. So far, no dice.
80 min: As a Premier League substitute, only Jermain Defoe (24) has more goals than Giroud (20).
78 min: Higuain is furious at being subbed off, chucking bibs and Lucozade bottles around the dugout. Calm down pal, you weren’t that good.
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76 min: Giroud is coming on, Higuain is coming off. The Argentinian gets a warm round of applause as he walks off, but that sub is about 15 minutes too late, for my money.
74 min: I can see that Kovacic is a sound technical player, but what does he actually do?
72 min: Ben Mee has been outstanding for Burnley. First to every cross and header.
69 min: Sarri is looking increasingly agitated on the touchline. The cigs have come out. He’s muttering and gesturing to the fourth official like a father desperately trying to explain to a Debenhams security guard that he’s lost his child. The atmosphere in Stamford Bridge is tense.
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67 min: And just as I say that, Emerson’s low cross flashes across Burnley’s box, missing everyone, before Azpilicueta steams in at the back post head of McNeil, stinging Heaton’s palms with a shot.
65 min: Chelsea need to change something, they haven’t created a clear-cut chance this half.
63 min: Burnley are playing their best football of the match. Barnes is bullying Christensen and McNeil is having much more of an influence, and has sent in two dangerous crosses.
61 min: “Any word as to whether N’Golo Kante is injured?” asks Ciaran Crowther. “Would be a huge blow to our hopes for the rest of the season if so.”
No news as yet, but you’re not wrong …
N'Golo Kante with 8 goals/assists in the PL this season, one more than Mesut Ozil and Dele Alli. The true playmaker.
— Duncan Alexander (@oilysailor) April 22, 2019
59 min: Chelsea so nearly come unstuck again from a simple ball forward. This time it is Cork that pops the ball over the top, and Wood is clear on goal again, but can’t control the bouncing ball! Kepa was in no-man’s land, and was fortunate that Wood’s touch was off.
58 min: Heaton, already on a yellow card for time-wasting, is persisting with taking his time with his goal kicks. Not really sure what he’s up to here.
57 min: Emerson tries from distance, the ball flashes a yard wide. Heaton was beaten.
55 min: Our first real lull of the match. Chelsea have plenty of possession (77% in the second half) but the away side are holding firm.
52 min: A golden chance for Wood! Ohhhh, wasted! Higuain gives Jorginho the mother of all hospital passes, Jorginho passes it straight to Barnes who slips Wood through on goal. The New Zealand striker is clear but desperate to get the ball onto his stronger right foot, and in doing so, allows Christensen to get back and close the angle! Wood must have taken two or three touches to set himself there, really poor.
50 min: As well as Higuain as played, the deeper that Burnley defend, it could be that Giroud is a better option for Chelsea’s crosses, which are plentiful. Pedro has been a useful addition to his game since coming on for Hudson-Odoi.
48 min: Eden Hazard has completed more passes in Burnley’s half (35), than Burnley have completed in Chelsea’s half (23).
46 min: Azpilicueta just appealed for a corner, the linesman gave a goal kick, and the Spaniard screamed to the heavens as though his first-born had just been thrown into a well. #commitment.
Peeeeeeep! We’re underway again.
Half time sub for Chelsea: Kovacic replaces Kante. Not sure if that is tactical or due to an injury.
Half-time reading
… on Chelsea’s Champions League semi-final against Lyon Féminines:
Chelsea have certainly been the better side, but look extremely soft at the back, and it would not be a surprise to see Burnley score from another set-piece. Higuain has been brilliant in leading the line for Chelsea, and has been their best player, just ahead of Hazard, Kante and Loftus Cheek.
Burnley have been poor with the ball – I don’t remember Dwight McNeil touching it all half and he has so often been the danger man for his team. Barnes and Wood have fed on scraps thus far, while Westwood and Cork look overrun Chelsea’s three central midfielders. Charlie Taylor, at left back, has impressed.
Half-time: Chelsea 2-2 Burnley
A good game of football.
45+2 min: A slow end to a pulsating half. Re Hudson-Odoi, we’ve had a speculative email from Rob Coughlin: “I’m no doctor but I’ve done my Achilles and that’s what it looks like.”
45 min: Three minutes added on here for added time, presumably for Hudson Odoi injury and all the goal celebrations we’ve had.
43 min: Higuain really is playing very well. Holding it up well against two strong centre-backs in Mee and Tarkowski and dropping deep to break the lines. He even threads a pass through the eye of a needle to find Pedro through on goal, but the Spaniard is unable to control it!
41 min: Hudson-Odoi has had to go off, so Pedro comes on his place. A nice replacement to have up your sleeve. Nobody seems to know what Hudson-Odoi has done, but he’s limping down the tunnel.
39 min: Of all the players in the Premier League, who would you least like to go shoulder-to-shoulder with? I’ll go for Loftus-Cheek. He shrugged off Barnes earlier like he was putting on a rucksack, and then sent Westwood flying with a perfectly legal barge in the build up to Kante’s goal. Has played very well today, thus far.
37 min: Hudson-Odoi has had a mixed first half, clumsy touches, loose passes but lots of dynamism on the right wing. He seems to have picked up a knock, and has gone down to receive some treatment.
35 min: Tarkowski cleans out Kante in midfield as Chelsea counter, but Kevin Friend does well to wave on advantage. The ball is played out to Hudson-Odoi on the right as Chelsea players flood into the box, but the young winger’s cross is poor and Heaton claims it cleanly.
34 min: Wonder what Nick Pope is up to on this fine Monday evening?
32 min: Tom Heaton has been booked for time-wasting, after continually dawdling over his goal kicks. Just the 68 minutes to go, Tom!
31 min: “Some of your readers might be interested to know that Ashley Barnes isn’t the only player in this match with an Austria connection,” emails Peter Oh. “Chelsea substitute Mateo Kovacic, though a Croatian international, was born in Austria and played youth football for Linz-based side LASK.”
29 min: Chelsea twice try their luck from range. Hazard cuts in on his right foot and curls one over, and then Higuain goes a little closer, smashing one just past Heaton’s right-hand post. Amazing what a bit of confidence can do, Higuain’s shooting technique – even with his weaker left foot – is quite something.
26 min: Because why not?
GOAL! Chelsea 2-2 Burnley (Barnes 24)
Burnley have had two shots, two goals. Sarri will be absolutely furious! From a free-kick just inside Chelsea’s half, a ball is floated to the back post. Two headers then go uncontested, the first from Mee to nod it back across goal, the second from Wood to flick it on, before Barnes (again unmarked) steers it into the roof of the net with a volley from six yards out. Bonkers defending. What a game we have here!
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20 min: Loftus-Cheek goes close! Chelsea are playing some intricate stuff around the box, culminating in the England international trying his luck from 25 yards out, curling a shot towards the top corner, maybe a yard over the bar. Not too dissimilar to the goal he scored against Brighton a few weeks ago.
19 min: I don’t think Burnley have touched the ball once in the last two minutes. Feeling like this game could run away from them very quickly.
16 min: Higuain is feeling it tonight, man has got his mojo back. Playing with a smile.
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GOAL! Chelsea 2-1 Burnley (Higuain 14)
I’m not Higuain’s biggest fan, but this is an absolutely stonking goal! With his back to goal, he leaves Mee for dead with a cute turn, plays a one-two with Azpilicueta, and then rockets a bullet shot off the underside of the bar from an relatively acute angle. I would love to know the MPH on that shot. Wow!
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GOAL! Chelsea 1-1 Burnley (Kante 13)
Well that didn’t last long. Kante’s goal – a first-time finish into the roof of Heaton’s net – comes after some mesmerising wingplay from Hazard. The Belgian left Lowton on his arse on the byline before cutting the ball back to Kante on the penalty spot.
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It wasn’t as good as this, but it wasn’t far off. A hint of shin in the volley as well which, as Rooney and Van Persie can attest, is not always a bad thing.
WINNER | Goal of the Season is awarded to Jeff Hendrick for his outstanding strike against Bournemouth at Turf Moor. Congratulations Jeff! pic.twitter.com/q3vMQKPoVV
— Burnley FC (@BurnleyOfficial) May 14, 2017
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GOAL! Chelsea 0-1 Burnley (Hendrick 8)
Burnley win a cheap corner off David Luiz, from which Azpilicueta heads out at the back post and Hendrick comes forward to meet the clearance on the volley, crashing his shot past Kepa from the edge of the box. A brilliant volley, and Chelsea are stunned!
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6 min: Mee clears off the line! Burnley are defending deep but Hazard dinks a delicate ball over the back four, Higuain peels off nicely and lobs the outrushing Heaton from an acute angle, but Mee gets back to clear, toeing it clear!
4 min: Is Hazard limping? He was passed fit for tonight after an ankle knock. Seems to be moving a bit gingerly.
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2 min: Chelsea have started very well, with Jorginho at the heart of things. Some lovely one-touch stuff up the right-hand side and Hudson-Odoi wins a corner. Hazard’s initial delivery is poor, but the ball rebounds back out to him and the Belgian takes a touch inside Taylor and unleashes a fierce strike straight at Heaton, who is lucky that Loftus-Cheeks skews the loose ball.
Peeeeeep! We’re off.
The players are out of the tunnel at Stamford Bridge. We’re a couple of minutes away from kick-off here.
Meanwhile, during tonight match between Napoli and Atalanta: “Sarri – one of us.” Bit of a par for Ancelotti.
Curva B. #NapoliAtalanta pic.twitter.com/o4TEkyR3L2
— Everything Napoli (@NapoliAndNaples) April 22, 2019
“Re Emerson,” writes Neal Butler, “as a Chelsea fan, I don’t think he’s great, but the team works better with him at left-back than with Alonso. Emerson’s a bit more disciplined and faster than Alonso, so him playing means the left-sided midfielder doesn’t have to track back all the time. I, and I guess most Chelsea fans who aren’t blinkered by Alonso’s attacking prowess at wing-back, would snap your hand off for a left-back half as good as Ashley Cole.”
@michaelbutler18 : it's not that @emersonpalmieri is great. It's just that @marcosalonso03 cannot play in a back 4 to save his life. He is great going forward for #cfc but they get torn apart on that side when defending. See @ChelseaFC vs @Arsenal (3-2) 2nd game of the season
— Chelsea_fann (@Chelseafann9) April 22, 2019
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Gus Poyet is the guest in the Sky studio tonight, which is all the reason I need to re-post this.
Drew Chappell has emailed in, as have a few others with the same sentiment.
“My thoughts on Emerson: He’s not Alonso, so there’s that.”
Burnley are unsurprisingly unchanged from the side that beat Cardiff – with eight Englishman in their starting XI (plus Ashley Barnes, who was born in Bath appeared for Austria at youth level). They line up in a uncompromising 4-4-2.
Chelsea fans, penny for your thoughts on Emerson? I have never been very impressed by the Italian in the Chelsea games I’ve watched, but he seems to be quite popular with you lot?
Email me michael.butler@theguardian.com or tweet @michaelbutler18, if you want.
EMERSON, CHRISTENSEN, CHO, RLC
— Mod (@CFCMod_) April 22, 2019
LETS GOOOOOOO 💙💙💙💙
pic.twitter.com/bwErDaXaIt
Leeds have blown it. Read all about it.
I suspect that unless Higuain scores tonight/plays a blinder, this will be his final start for Chelsea. Can’t see how Sarri can continue to justify playing him ahead of Giroud, with such difficult fixtures to come after tonight.
The teams
Chelsea: Arrizabalaga, Azpilicueta, Christensen, Luiz, Emerson Palmieri, Kante, Jorginho, Loftus-Cheek, Hudson-Odoi, Higuain, Hazard.
Subs: Barkley, Pedro, Caballero, Kovacic, Giroud, Zappacosta, Cahill.
Burnley: Heaton, Lowton, Tarkowski, Mee, Taylor, Hendrick, Westwood, Cork, McNeil, Barnes, Wood.
Subs: Gudmundsson, Brady, Gibson, Hart, Ward, Vydra, Long.
Referee: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire)
Preamble
The weekend couldn’t have gone much better for Chelsea. Tottenham, Arsenal and Manchester United all lost, and with a win tonight, Maurizio Sarri and co will go third. Yes, they will have played one more game than their top-four rivals. Admittedly, they could still be caught be any of them, particularly because Chelsea have a tough run-in (Manchester United away, Watford and Leicester away) and a Europa League campaign to contend.
There are lots of things to worry about in the future (the departure of Eden Hazard, the transfer embargo, global warming) but tonight – skipping towards Stamford Bridge in some sort of delirious Bank Holiday weekend haze – Chelsea fans should be able to enjoy themselves.
Should. Chelsea are comfortable favourites tonight but Burnley arrive having won three on the bounce, results which have all but secured their Premier League survival for another season. You might also remember that in this fixture last season, on the opening day, they beat the newly-crowned champions (all nine men of them) 3-2 at the Bridge.
Let’s see how we go. Could be another five-goal thriller, could be 90 mins of Jorginho and David Luiz playing keep ball.
Kick-off: 8pm BST.
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