Five things we learned as Chelsea suffer back-to-back defeats with loss at Ipswich | OneFootball

Chelsea have suffered back-to-back defeats in the Premier League after losing 2-0 to Ipswich Town at Portman Road.

Liam Delap’s first-half penalty and former Chelsea man Omari Hutchinson’s second-half strike saw the Blues make it three games without a win in the Premier League, following a draw with Everton and Boxing Day defeat to Fulham. Victory for Ipswich sees them end 2024 with their first home win of the season, and their first home Premier League win since 2002.

Hayters TV’s Dan Bennett was at Portman Road for the game, here’s his five talking points from a disappointing night for boss Enzo Maresca and his players…

Delap looks destined for big things

Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap has already been linked with some of the Premier League’s top clubs and it is easy to see why. He has been excellent for Ipswich since his summer move to the Tractor Boys from Manchester City, and was instrumental in his side pulling off a huge upset against Chelsea.

He set the tone early on, barging into Tosin and then committing a heavy foul on Levi Colwill to show what they could expect from him. He won, and then scored, an early penalty to put Ipswich ahead and then did brilliantly to set up Hutchinson for the second, latching onto Axel Disasi’s lazy pass, driving forward and then playing the ball to his team-mate to finish into the bottom corner. Ipswich were put under plenty of pressure and had plenty of defending to do but he ensured his team still posed a threat on the counter. He has all the attributes needed to be a top striker for years to come and is still only 21.

Disasi’s mistake costs Chelsea at a pivotal time

Chelsea ended the first half dominating the ball, creating chances, and giving Ipswich very little opportunity to counter-attack. That pattern continued in the second half, and it looked as though Ipswich would be in for a long evening, until Disasi’s costly error gave the home side an all important second goal. Against a team that is so devastating on the counter, concentration is key, and Disasi’s lazy pass completely changed the game. Delap still had plenty to do and it was a brilliant finish by Hutchinson but Disasi must shoulder the blame for the goal.

Frustration for Felix

Joao Felix has seen his opportunities limited in the Premier League under Maresca this season and endured more frustration against Ipswich. He was given the chance to start out on the left for Chelsea but often drifted into a more central position with Marc Cucurella providing the width. He started the game poorly, being muscled off the ball too easily twice, with an aggressive Ipswich clearly targeting the Portugal international and he struggled to deal with that physicality.

He did have some good moments, though, and thought he had equalised with a brilliant finish from Cole Palmer’s cross only for VAR to rule it out for offside. He is clearly a very talented player with the ball but he seems to be finding it difficult to carve out a role in this Chelsea team, and he was the first player to come off just after his side had gone 2-0 down, being replaced by Nicolas Jackson on 55 minutes.

What does the future hold for Nkunku?

Another player given a rare starting opportunity in the Premier League was Christopher Nkunku, who led the line up top in place of Jackson. Nkunku’s time at Chelsea has been a challenging one so far, suffering a serious knee injury soon after his arrival which kept him out for much of last season and he has played much of his football this season in the Conference League.

He did very little to suggest he deserves to start over Jackson in the 65 minutes he was on the pitch, however, and had very little involvement in the game while rarely posing a threat in behind like Jackson does. Like Felix, he has yet to really find a role. He is perhaps a better fit in the position behind the striker, but is unlikely to get to play there unless Palmer gets injured. The forward has been heavily linked with a move away from Chelsea, and perhaps a parting of ways makes sense for both sides.

Maresca right to be cautious?

Chelsea boss Maresca has consistently denied that his team are in the Premier League title race this season, even with them second in the table. But this defeat, their second on the bounce and their third in a row without a win, sees the Blues sit ten points behind leaders Liverpool in fourth having also played a game more than them.

There is no need for Maresca and his team to panic. Chelsea played well for large parts of the game and were ultimately made to pay by a controversial penalty decision and a big mistake. But perhaps their recent form, and the vulnerabilities they have shown, means Maresca was right all along.