Fulham halts Chelsea’s title chase after Muniz secures last-minute comeback win | Premier League

Perhaps there will be some debate over Fulham’s equalizer after 82 minutes of this 2-1 west London derby win for Marco Silva’s team at Stamford Bridge. Certainly Pedro Neto spent a long time being treated by the medical team after he was caught by Alex Iwobi’s shoulder as he ran past him far too easily on Fulham’s left. Maybe Neto will be better off trying to attack with his feet in the future.

But there was no debate about the winning goal which came five minutes into stoppage time, coolly saved by substitute Rodrigo Muniz, reward for a tireless second-half performance and a moment that had the Fulham bench bouncing in full and squirmed together on the sidelines.

Fulham deserved to win here, just as Chelsea never really seemed to have the momentum or second wind needed to retain the lead that Cole Palmer had given with his sensational first-half goal.

The defeat leaves Chelsea four points behind the top of the table, having played two games more than Liverpool before the leaders host Leicester in the late game. This was never really a title challenge or a title indictment, more of a title curiosity stroll. Enzo Maresca keeps saying his team is not ready. He’s right about the evidence here.

From the start, it was basically two football games in one. On the one hand, the main feature, an energetic Premier League derby, the standard battle for space and small gaps. There was also, at least in the first hour, a game between Palmer and the rest of the world, those interim jumps into hyperspace when Chelsea’s number 10 won the ball and the day suddenly opened with something completely different.

There’s still something Christmasy, or at least some Boxing Day feel, about this Chelsea model, surrounded by shiny new plastic stuff, a little dazed, a little jaded, still thinking about what to do with four brand new boxed Lego Death Stars. Legacy of Todd Boehly’s Drunk Santa as Football Director.

Here they started with a straight, non-reversing back four, with Roméo Lavia missing from midfield. Fulham had at least one of their full-backs standing deep early on, with the defensive line loitering cautiously near the halfway line. Adama Traoré started high on the right in super short sleeves, his biceps flexing like ripe Ibérico hams, always trying to escape Marc Cucurella in the infield. And they were in good spirits from the start, with Traoré and Alex Iwobi busy in the spaces left open by Chelsea’s advances in possession.

This was all fine until after 15 minutes Palmer decided to stand up to his full height. The goal encapsulated exactly why Palmer is both so effective and so unusual in modern football. There really wasn’t much going on, there was no obvious pre-determined path to goal as he picked up the ball from 30 yards out, took a short pass from Levi Colwill and half-turned. Except, yeah, maybe I’ll just do that.

Within three seconds, Palmer wiped out three Fulham players and fired the ball into the net. First he deviated from Andreas Pereira. Then he changed foot mid-stride and hacked past Sasa Lukic. Finally, Palmer not only shot through Issa Diop’s legs, but placed a beautifully crafted side foot finish through Diop’s legs in a way that was so carefully and lovingly precise that it was almost sensual, like a loving little squeeze on the Thigh.

Afterwards, Palmer took a few moments to have some fun, twisting and poking an exhibition pass from the touchline that hit a Fulham player, leading to an outrageous little cage football poke to the side when he could have shot himself. Stay there. This has not happened yet.

And Fulham had chances to equalize in the first half, or rather half chances, moments of one-on-one defense in extreme cases. They had more possession and just as many shots. Chelsea didn’t have much leeway in the team here, no calm on the ball, deeper passages, phases of relaxation. Sometimes the home crowd applauded in the second half when a Chelsea player stopped, put a foot on the ball or passed backwards for a while. That 1-0 lead was always a little anxious and uncertain.

Fulham were orderly, energetic and in a good mood. Chelsea played on the counter-attack for a while and were pinned back by Fulham’s verve in midfield, where Fernandes controlled the ball well but often overran it. After 58 minutes, Traoré ran past him on the left like a man absentmindedly jumping a traffic cone, leaving Neto to eventually drag him to the ground.

It was a harbinger of Neto not getting close enough to Iwobi before the equalizer. The ball was crossed low, headed back by Timothy Castagne and then played unmarked near the goal by Harry Wilson. From then on, the winner came very late; but it never really felt like a surprise.