Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea

Chelsea kicked off 2023 with more dropped points, as relegation-battling Nottingham Forest came from behind to draw on New Year's Day in the Premier League.

The Gabonese also failed to connect with a cross at the back post for what should've been his moment. But for Chelsea fans, more concerning will be the fact he looks a shadow of the man they bought from Napoli in a defensive sense. Central to Chelsea's best play, the USMNT superstar was a dynamic presence throughout. Boly was in danger of becoming a lightning rod for Forest's issues earlier this season, but performed excellently today, aside from his unfortunate part in the Chelsea goal. Notably, they remain reluctant to get on the back of Steve Cooper, though, directing the vast majority of their anger towards the officials and a small amount to their plucky troops. Having began the season as a traditional No.9, Awoniyi is now being deployed from the left flank, but continued to be a thorn in defenders' sides. The latter was targeted by Awoniyi (more on that later), but Cucurella was perhaps more of a concern. The Blues also extended an unwanted hoodoo by failing to win their first game of a calendar year for the seventh time in succession. Forest showed more bite for the entirety, and constantly made their possession count, threatening both through the middle and via the flanks, looking dangerous on the counter. Still in the early days of his reign, they offered very little spark or inventiveness to try and make an impact without their home comforts. Forest never looked in danger of losing the game after that, with Graham Potter’s men failing to have any concerted pressure late on. The second period began with Forest in the ascendancy once again, with Taiwo Awoniyi and Brennan Johnson both having opportunities to draw them level early on.