Nottingham Forest held Chelsea to a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge, ending their poor run in the capital, having previously suffered four Premier League (PL) defeats on the bounce in London.
The hosts came into this fixture high on confidence having won five successive matches in all competitions. Standing in the way of a sixth win was a Forest side who have proven to be a tough nut to crack, and with a league-low 11 goals seen in their opening five PL matches, the quiet start to proceedings at the Bridge was perhaps unsurprising.
Noni Madueke tried his luck on more than one occasion during the first period, coming closest with a curling effort that sailed just wide of the top-left corner.
The final minutes before HT were full of action as both sides created their best efforts. Having dominated possession, the Blues came inches from taking the lead when Madueke burst into the box and pulled the ball back to Cole Palmer, who poked a deflected effort onto the post before Mats Sels scrambled clear on the goalline.
At the other end, Chelsea had Wesley Fofana to thank for a goal-saving block to deny Ryan Yates a smash-and-grab opener.
However, Nuno Espírito Santo didn’t have to wait long to see his side go ahead after the restart, with a set-piece delivery from James Ward-Prowse finding Nikola Milenković, who headed the ball down for a sliding Chris Wood to direct inside the far post.
Fortunately for the home fans, that lead lasted just seven minutes as Chelsea’s biggest goal threat of the afternoon, Madueke, found the back of the net, cutting inside from the right wing to bury a low shot into the bottom corner.
With momentum in their favour, Chelsea pushed for a second goal that would not only draw them level with Manchester City as the league’s most prolific scorers but also hand them a potentially decisive lead.
With just under 15 minutes to play, Ward-Prowse was dismissed for a second yellow card when he prevented a Nicolas Jackson breakaway, clutching the ball after slipping to the ground.
Sels produced an excellent double save to deny Palmer before 13 minutes of stoppage time saw plenty of drama, with substitutes João Félix and Christopher Nkunku each spurning opportunities either side of a missed one-on-one chance for Neco Williams.
Despite the numerical advantage, Chelsea were unable to claim the three points, meaning Espírito Santo’s side have lost just once in the PL this term, lifting them into the top half in ninth. Meanwhile, Enzo Maresca’s Blues stay in the top four, having also tasted PL defeat just once this season.
