Chelsea secured qualifying for the Champions League next season with a one-goal victory over Nottingham Forest at City Grounds on Sunday in the final round of their Premier League campaign.
The only goal of the match was Levi Colwill’s job in just under five minutes of the second half.
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Two names, namely Eric da Silva Moreira and Taiwan’s awoniyi, were missing from the forest squad.
With Mats Sels at the goal, the standard centre-back partnership between Nikola Milenkovic and Murillo was adjacent to Neco Williams and Ola Aina. Ibrahim Sangare secured the diamond-shaped midfield, in which Nicholas Dominguez and Elliot Anderson play box-to-box roles, and tightened Morgan Gibbs White at the tip. Anthony Elanga joined Chris Wood in the attack.
As for Chelsea, Wesley Fofana and Omari Kellyman were injured, but Micairo Mudrick (suspected doping) and Nicholas Jackson (red card) were suspended.
Robert Sanchez stood between the posts and was protected by back fours of the middle back Toshin Adalabioyo and Colwill, left back Mark Kukulera and right back Reese James. Moises Caiceco paired with Enzo Fernandez in the middle of the park, and the trio of Jadon Sancho, Cole Palmer and Nuni Maduke played just behind Pedro Neto as makeshift strikers.
Match Summary
This game had few chances in the nervous first half. Pedro Neto served as a proxy for Nicholas Jackson’s suspension, firing a weak volley at the bar, and Forest striker Chris Wood missed the open goal after beating Robert Sanchez into a cross.
Colwill was a little clearer right after the break and went home from close range after Neto delivered the box over the delivery. From there, Chelsea took a distinctively passive approach, relinquishing most of its ownership, but effectively suffocating the forest’s counterattack weapon.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side struggled to break down Chelsea’s deep block, with Morgan Gibbs White and Anthony Elanga poses a threat, but Forest passed the resilient backline, which was introduced by Tosin Adalabioyo and Colwill, with Sanchez confidently trading with aesthetic pressure.
Forest’s best chance at equalising came at a stop time when the wood found space inside the box, but a poor first touch disappointed him, and he inflated his efforts.
Raise your chin and the forest
This is Nottingham Forest’s season criterion, where securing a meeting league location might feel like a bittersweet outcome. Nuno Espirito Santo’s men spent many of the campaigns that have settled in the top five of the Premier League, but suffered from qualifying for the historic Champions League.
Eventually, their revocation came at home. There, the forest did not win the ground in the city where it once resided. Coupled with a narrow defeat to Chelsea on the final day, that slow slump reflects what they were, despite achieving European qualifications for the first time in over 20 years.
That said, competing in the European competition is a huge success for a team that failed to secure Premier League survival a year ago. If anything, forest fans should (and probably are) be proud of their managers and team.
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Chelsea is back to the best
It was very close – Forest would take Chelsea’s place in the Champions League if Wood scored his chances. As it stands, the Blues will be playing in the UEFA elite competition next season.
It appears things are beginning to click at Stamford Bridge after spending enormous amounts of money on players who couldn’t justify such an investment for years. Other expensive signatures seem to have finally found the right rhythm.
Some reports say that Maresca’s job would have been on the line if he failed to make the top five, but other more reliable journalists argue that the club has always had faith in a 45-year-old tactician and doesn’t even consider saying goodbye to him this summer.
But ironically, if Maresca takes the next step and properly challenges the Premier League title and the glory of the Champions League, then it is clear that Maresca will need more reinforcements. Of course, that means there is also outgoing.
The summer windows are about to open, so we’ll see what happens right away.
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