Sancho’s Late Strike Saves Chelsea, But Top-Five Hopes Fade
What a rollercoaster at Stamford Bridge this weekend! If you’re a Chelsea fan, this 2-2 draw against Ipswich Town was probably more frustrating than relieving. Sure, Jadon Sancho’s beautiful equalizer gave the Blues a lifeline, but when you take a step back, this game felt like a missed opportunity—a stumble in a race where every point now matters.
Let’s talk about the match itself. Chelsea, almost back to full strength after their Conference League rotation, looked promising early on. There were flashes—Jackson hit the woodwork, Madueke had a decent volley, and Colwill forced a brilliant save. But then, things started to unravel. Ipswich, who are fighting their own desperate battle at the other end of the table, punished Chelsea’s early sloppiness in ruthless fashion. George Hirst—starting only because Delap was on the bench nursing an injury—completely bossed Chelsea’s defense. His setup for Enciso’s opener was textbook hold-up play, and minutes later, the visitors were 2-0 up thanks to Ben Johnson’s well-timed header.
At this point, the Stamford Bridge crowd wasn’t having it. Chants of “You’re boring, Enzo” echoed from the stands as Maresca’s signature slow-build approach drew more groans than cheers. Chelsea looked rattled. The composure vanished. The plan was thrown out. And Ipswich, to their credit, took full advantage of that chaos.
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The second half brought a bit of hope. Chelsea came out with more urgency—Madueke’s surge led to an own goal from Tuanzebe just seconds after the restart. That set the stage for a frantic, end-to-end finale. Sancho, who had just come on, produced a stunning curling finish to level it late. Cue the roar from the crowd—it was his first goal since December and an absolute beauty.
But even after drawing level, Chelsea just couldn’t find a winner. Trevoh Chalobah, Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernández—they all had their moments, but Ipswich keeper Alex Palmer was immense. Meanwhile, Cole Palmer—Chelsea’s main man earlier this season—has now gone 14 games without a goal. The magic just isn’t there right now.
Ipswich, 14 points from safety, played like a team with nothing to lose, and that made them dangerous. McKenna had his side organized, resilient, and opportunistic. Even with Philogene going off injured shortly after coming on, they held their ground. Chelsea might’ve had more possession, more shots, and more “moments,” but football’s about results, and this was two points dropped at home.
So, where does this leave Chelsea? Still outside the top five and running out of runway. With tough away fixtures coming up—Fulham, Newcastle, Forest—this felt like a game they had to win. Instead, it’s a frustrating reminder that potential and performance aren’t always in sync.
And if Chelsea miss out on Champions League football, they might just look back at both Ipswich fixtures—yes, the only team to beat them at Portman Road this season—as the ones that got away.
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