Wesley Fofana (Chelsea) upset against Bournemouth in the Premier League, December 30, 2025
Credit: Getty Images
Chelsea lacked skill up front and solidity behind against Bournemouth (2-2) on Tuesday, a new poor performance for the Blues who end a disappointing month with just one victory in seven league matches.
On the podium in November and seen as title candidates, the Londoners only managed to beat Everton over the past month, during which they drew four matches and suffered two defeats. They are fifth pending the other matches of the 19th day and face Manchester City in the next one.
One draw, two losers
Enzo Maresca’s team had several chances to win in the second half, but they fell on the goalkeeper, or lacked skill in the last move. On the podium at the end of October, the Bournemouth Cherries are fifteenth after a series of ten matches without a win (five defeats and five draws). And they will now face Arsenal, Tottenham, Brighton and Liverpool…
United, the hitch against Wolves
The most notable poor performance is surely to the credit of Manchester United, unable to beat the bottom, which almost everyone has managed to do in the Premier League this season. Wolves secured the third point of their nightmarish exercise, as they trailed at Old Trafford.
With a shot deflected by the defense which caught José Sa on the wrong foot, Joshua Zirkzee thought he was paving the way for an easy success for his team (1-0, 27th). But Ladislav Krejci iced the Red Devils just before the break (1-1, 45th). Ruben Amorim’s players played with the handbrake in the second half, letting slip a success that would have been valuable in the race for the Champions League.
Wissa scores again for Newcastle
Newcastle gave themselves a little breathing room by beating Burnley (3-1), the penultimate who experienced a first quarter of an hour in hell. At home, the Clarets conceded a goal from Joelinton after 65 seconds, then another from Yoane Wissa five minutes later, before losing defender Maxime Estève to injury, just out of the infirmary.
The visitors managed their advantage throughout the match to record their first victory in four league matches (against a draw and two defeats). Siamese brothers of the month of December with a perfectly identical record (three defeats and three draws each), West Ham and Brighton shared the points (2-2) at the London Stadium. There was another duel between teams in small form and it was Everton who won 2-0 at Nottingham Forest.
