The pattern of the game was set inside the first minute, with Chelsea dominating possession and controlling proceedings and Forest sitting back with ten, sometimes eleven men behind the ball.
Chelsea were finding some space on the wings, with Madueke and Sancho trying to make things happen, but Forest packed the box and space there was at a high premium. Madueke did try his luck 1-v-1 a couple times, but our first shot on target did not arrive until the final few minutes of the half: a flurry of chances with Enzo coming close and Palmer hitting the post.
At the other end, Colwill blocked a shot to remind us that Forest did pose a threat on the counter.
And Forest posed a threat on set pieces as well, with one of those leading to a goal inside the first few minutes of the second half.
Chelsea responded well, and Madueke equalized less than ten minutes later, finding reward for his endeavor and positive play. We pressed for a quick second, but were not able to do so despite a flurry of chances, most of them falling to Madueke again.
James Ward-Prowse picked up a most blatant second yellow in the 78th minute, but that didn’t really change much since Forest already had ten men packed in their box at all times.
Things kicked off after a late challenge from Williams on Cucurella out of bounds, but we settled back in for 13(!) minutes of stoppage time (half of that coming from Gibbs-White’s injury and treatment that took six minutes).
Chelsea generated a few excellent chances in that stoppage time, but neither Félix nor Nkunku were able to make them count. At the other end, Sánchez made two ridiculous stops as well, to at least preserve the draw.
Full rotation from midweek. Same starting XI as last weekend.
First goal for Noni since that Wolves hat-trick
Hopefully Colwill’s hip issue nothing serious
Cucurella, Fofana suspended for next game due to yellow card accumulation
Next up: international break, then Liverpool away in two weeks
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