In the match of round 23 of the Premier League, Chelsea visited Man City. Striker Noni Madueke gave The Blues an early lead, but they could not maintain this advantage. In the end, Manchester City came back to win 3-1 with goals from Josko Gvardiol, Erling Haaland and Phil Foden.
The defeat to Man City marked Chelsea's sixth consecutive game in which they conceded, a poor sign for the defence. While defender Colwill and goalkeeper Robert Sanchez remain inconsistent, the newly recalled centre-back Trevoh Chalobah is not doing any better. In the situation where Haaland scored to make it 2-1, Chalobah made a mistake and was easily overcome by his opponent.
Legendary Michael Owen assessed the Chelsea defender as too immature, according to Sky Sports: “I think it was naive. If you were Liverpool with Virgil van Dijk or Arsenal with Saliba, then think about playing 1v1 against Haaland. I don’t think there is any other defender who can stop a striker like that. He should have coordinated with the goalkeeper in that phase.
I think it's naive. You can't do that with Haaland. You just give Haaland what he wants. He dreams of those situations, why would you do that? You have to put him in situations that are not good for him."
Chelsea are currently in 6th place in the Premier League. The Blues are going through their toughest spell of the season, with just 1 win in their last 7 games. If coach Enzo Maresca does not make changes soon, the London team could miss out on the Champions League for another year.
