Cole Palmer said "I should have had five or six" goals, despite his history-making quadruple during Chelsea's victory over Brighton.

The Blues forward became the first player to score four goals before half-time in a single Premier League game, as the hosts came from behind to prevail 4-2 at Stamford Bridge.

Palmer took his tally for the season to six for Enzo Maresca's side, who climbed to third place and within a point of Manchester City and Arsenal.

Although, the England man was a little disappointed not to add to his haul, having also hit the post, been denied by the offside flag, and sending a decent second-half opportunity wide.

"I try and play every game the best I can," he told Match of the Day. "I should have had five or six!

"When I missed the first chance, I was upset, but with the way they played and their high line, I felt we'd get more chances.

"The manager set up a good game plan, we knew how to attack them with first-time passes in behind. Brighton are a good team, they pass the ball well. They play similar to us. Three points are what we needed, and that is what we got."

Palmer also addressed comparisons made by former Arsenal and England forward Theo Walcott between him and ex-Gunner, Dennis Bergkamp.

"I know he is a legend in the Premier League, but I didn't really watch him, I was too young," he added. "I have seen clips. He was a top player, so thank you, Theo!"

Maresca hopes Palmer can maintain his impressive performance levels, while also revealing his belief that Chelsea are "ahead of my expectations" after stretching their winning streak to four matches.

"I told [Cole] he could have scored two or three more," the Blues boss said. "He is a top player and just has to continue in the same way.

"A very good win, we could have done better in some moments of the game, but overall, we deserved to win. 

"The two goals we conceded can happen. The important thing is the team continues in the same way, creating many chances. We are happy.

"I was more focused on the way the team progressed rather than results. We are ahead of my expectations in the way we want to play."

Enzo Maresca was pleased with Chelsea's win in their Europa Conference League play-off first leg but says they "played with fire" in the closing stages.

Christopher Nkunku and Noni Madueke both netted in the second half of their 2-0 victory, earning Maresca his first win in charge of the Blues.

However, it was almost a different story as Chelsea came under late pressure, with Jeremy Guillermenot squandering two chances in stoppage time to half the deficit for the Swiss side.

Despite seeing improvements from their Premier League defeat against Manchester City, Maresca says there is still a lot of work to do if they want to find some consistency.

"I was a bit worried because in the last 10 minutes, we played a little bit with fire because we could manage the game completely differently," he said after the game. "It was good that we didn't concede, but we can learn.

"We are learning how to manage the game. Keeping the ball is the correct intention at 2-0 up but where is not good, in our half.

"We need to do the same on the opposite side. It was important to win the game with nine changes. There were many good things."

With as big a squad as Chelsea's, this game was the perfect chance for Maresca to give more players minutes.

Mykhailo Mudryk's performance caused some frustration with the Italian as he struggled to make an impact, especially in a hesitant first half, but Maresca is keen to help him find his consistency.

"This is the mission, this is Mudryk, not only tonight but since he joined the club," he added.

"I think he had good moments but when he has the ball you don't know if you'll get one thing or another. It is consistency.

"We are going to try and help him to change. When he is in the final third, it is making the right decision. Most of his mistakes are about the choice."

There was also some cause for concern among Chelsea fans as Cole Palmer was seen holding his hamstring as he left the pitch, but Maresca brushed off any worries, claiming it is only a minor problem.

"Cole felt something but he looks fine. Hopefully, it is no problem, and he can be available for Sunday's game [at Wolves]," he said.

Christopher Nkunku and Noni Madueke's second-half goals gave Chelsea a 2-0 advantage over Servette in their Europa Conference League play-off tie.

The Blues put the disappointment of their Premier League defeat to Manchester City behind them, taking control of qualifying in the first leg at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea made a slow start to the game, with Gael Ondoua causing an early scare for Filip Jorgensen from a tight angle, though the goalkeeper was equal to it.

The Blues then stepped up the pace after the break – Nkunku darted in behind Servette's defence before being taken out by Jeremy Frick, and he made no mistake with the resulting penalty, emphatically firing it into the back of the net.

Marc Guiu should have doubled their lead moments later, picking Frick's pocket outside the box, but the goalkeeper recovered brilliantly to race back and smother both attempts by the Spaniard, who should have done better.

Madueke then made sure of the win with 14 minutes left on the clock, latching onto Enzo Fernandez's throughball before rifling his shot over Frick and into the roof of the net. 

Jeremy Guillermenot should have halved the deficit in stoppage time but lifted his volley over the bar from point-blank range before Jorgensen denied him again with the last touch of the game.

Data Debrief: Blues up and running

Chelsea look like they are starting to gel in the final third, after struggling to do so in their opening league game.

They had seven shots on target out of 14, both more than they managed last Sunday, generating 1.87 expected goals, and had 56 final third entries.

There is still work to do at the back though, as they gave up 22 shots from the Swiss side, but Enzo Maresca will still take confidence from their clean sheet. 

Manchester City will begin their Premier League title defence with a testing trip to play Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on the opening weekend.

Pep Guardiola's side have already won a historic four straight titles and will begin their pursuit of a fifth consecutive crown with a tough away match on Sunday August 18 against a team now managed by Enzo Maresca.

Man City have won their opening Premier League match in 12 of the last 13 seasons, though the exception was an away game in London when they lost 1-0 to Tottenham in 2021-22.

This will be the first time in 53 years that Chelsea have begun a top-flight campaign with a match against the reigning champions. They last did that in 1971, losing to Arsenal at Highbury.

The Premier League fixtures for 2024-25 were unveiled on Tuesday.

Arsenal narrowly missed out to Man City in each of the last two seasons and Mikel Arteta's men discovered they will start at home to Wolves on Saturday August 17.

It is Manchester United and Fulham who will open the season on Friday August 16, with the FA Cup holders playing at home in an evening fixture.

Arne Slot's tenure as Liverpool manager starts with a trip away to play promoted Ipswich Town, who return to the top flight after a 22-year absence, while play-off winners Southampton will face Newcastle United at St James' Park.

The opening weekend concludes on Monday August 19 as Leicester City host Tottenham in a difficult start to the Foxes' Premier League return.

There are some other notable matches taking place in the early weeks of the season, with Arsenal away to Aston Villa in the two teams' second match of the campaign.

The Gunners also have back-to-back away matches against Tottenham and Man City in September, meaning they will have had road games against three of the top five sides from last season inside the first five matchweeks.

Man Utd, meanwhile, are due to face Liverpool at Old Trafford on August 31 in the standout fixture of Matchday 3.

Mauricio Pochettino has warned his Chelsea players they face their "most dangerous" game when West Ham visit Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

The Blues picked up one of their best Premier League results of the season on Thursday in beating Tottenham 2-0 on home soil.

Another London derby now awaits, but Pochettino believes the quick turnaround in matches could work against his side.

"It is the most dangerous game because now we have to keep the same mentality for Sunday," he said.

"We are playing a team who are so strong, have physicality and West Ham are having a fantastic season and have been competing in Europe.

"We need to recover players. We don't have too many options to add fresh people to the squad and they have had the whole week to prepare."

Inconsistent Chelsea have often struggled to build on positive results this season, explaining why they sit eighth in the Premier League.

Pochettino's side are two points better off than West Ham with a game in hand as they both desperately attempt to keep their top-six hopes alive.

West Ham are winless in five matches in all competitions, seeing them drop down the Premier League and exit the Europa League.

Doubts remain over manager David Moyes' future, with his current deal expiring at the end of the campaign, but he is focusing only on Chelsea.

"We're going to have to play well to get a result against them," Moyes said at his pre-match press conference.

"I think [Pochettino's] had a difficult job, and they've started to hit form. Mauricio is a great manager, and they have a lot of good, young players.

"There are lots of tough stadiums to go to, Stamford Bridge being one of those. We'll go there and do everything we can to get a result."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Chelsea - Cole Palmer

Palmer has undoubtedly been Chelsea's best player in his debut campaign at the club, having scored and assisted a combined 29 goals in 29 Premier League matches. 

The England international has been directly involved in a goal against 13 different opponents in the competition this term, and he will be looking to make that 14 against West Ham after missing the reverse fixture.

West Ham - Michail Antonio

Antonio earned West Ham a point against Liverpool last time out and now has a combined 99 goals and assists in the Premier League for United.

That leaves the Jamaica international, who has four goals in his past seven outings, one short of hitting a milestone that no other player has ever managed for the club.

MATCH PREDICTION: CHELSEA WIN

West Ham won 3-1 when the sides most recently met in August and are aiming to pull off a Premier League double in this fixture for just the third time, having previously done so in 2002-03 and 2019-20.

However, Chelsea have lost just one of their past 17 home league games against West Ham - a 1-0 defeat in November 2019 under Frank Lampard.

Goals can be expected as West Ham have gone 15 Premier League games without a clean sheet, last having a longer run without a shutout in the top flight between March and November 2008 (24 games).

Five of West Ham's last 10 Premier League matches, meanwhile, have seen both teams score two or more goals, including each of the last two. 

Facing Chelsea on a Sunday could prove to be good news for West Ham as their London rivals have won just one of their past 13 league games on the final day of the week.

However, Moyes will need no reminding he has never won an away league match against Chelsea in 18 attempts. Pochettino will become the 11th different manager he has faced at Stamford Bridge in that time.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

CHELSEA - 49.4%

DRAW - 26.5%

WEST HAM - 24.1%

Gary Neville says it "would be madness" for Chelsea to sack head coach Mauricio Pochettino as he is ideally suited to managing the club.

Pochettino admitted after Chelsea's 2-0 win over his former side Tottenham on Thursday that he is unsure of his future at Stamford Bridge.

The Argentinian has been under intense pressure at times this season, most recently on the back of the 5-0 loss to Arsenal last week.

Chelsea have since responded with a battling 2-2 draw at Aston Villa and the impressive win over Spurs, but doubts remain over Pochettino's future.

However, Neville insists it would be wrong of Chelsea to part company with the former Paris Saint-Germain boss at the end of the season.

"There was talk of Pochettino being under pressure a month or so ago," he told Sky Sports. "I think it would be madness to change the coach whose quality of work with these types of player is renowned.

"Making sure you have stability through another transfer window seems more critical than the idea someone else would come in and do a better job. That doesn't feel right here.

"He's a proven coach. One of the great coaches in the Premier League in the last five, six, seven years. Pochettino has had some up and down moments this season. But this is a good one."

Chelsea's victory over Tottenham moved them up to eighth in the Premier League and now within three points of Manchester United in sixth.

United have also struggled for consistency this season, raising doubts over their own manager Erik ten Hag as the end of the season nears.

There have also been reports that most of United's players will be up for sale when the transfer window opens, with or without Ten Hag in charge.

Ten Hag labelled those rumours "untrue", and Neville is adamant there will not be wholesale changes to the squad during the close season.

"To be fair, you know it's not true," the United legend said. "I mean [Kobbie] Mainoo is not for sale – there's no way that man can be sold so every player can't be for sale, it's impossible. There's no way United could sell their best young players.

"There's a lack of stability here at Chelsea at the moment, but there's a lack of stability at United. Richard Arnold, John Murtough, Patrick Stewart, Cliff Baty, all the senior management, Darren Fletcher's been moved to a different role within the club, Jason Wilcox has come in.

"I can understand why there is quite a few players who will be under pressure and potentially would be sold, but I can't believe it's every player or anywhere near that."

Tottenham simply have to put in the hard graft as they look to salvage something from what is turning out to be a disappointing end to the campaign.

Spurs' Champions League hopes appear to be fading fast after they lost for a third straight game in the Premier League, going down 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Thursday.

Tottenham have four games remaining, albeit that includes meetings with Liverpool and Manchester City, and they are seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa.

They were particularly vulnerable from set-pieces once again, with both of Chelsea's goals coming from such scenarios.

Asked how Spurs can turn it around, Postecoglou said told BBC Sport: "Just hard work mate, there's no major formula. We will work hard and make sure we get it right."

He added: "It wasn't a great night for us. We didn't play at the levels we needed to and didn't deserve something from it.

"We lacked belief and conviction in our game. I don't know if it is low confidence but we are not playing with the mindset we need to play the football we want to and that is something I have to look at.

"It is on me to fix it. That is what we will be doing. We had bigger issues tonight than set pieces."

Speaking to Sky Sports, the Tottenham boss said: "I feel like we've lost a bit of belief and conviction in our football and that is on me to change that.

"It wasn't about conceding the [first] goal, it was our approach to playing football and we were nowhere near good enough. That is on me.

"We've been in a bit of a grind for a while now, that is part of our challenge and part of our growth. We have to go out there and perform and sometimes you have to grind out. We were poor today."

Spurs defender Micky van de Ven, meanwhile, conceded Champions League qualification looks out of sight.

"It will be difficult. I don't want to look up to the Champions League after this game, it was not a good performance from us and it is important we play a good game on Sunday," he said.

Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, became the first manager to complete a Premier League double over Tottenham having previously managed them in the competition.

Chelsea are up to eighth, just three points behind sixth-placed Manchester United.

"So happy and so pleased. So happy for our players," Pochettino said.

"The first half was fantastic. Then you have to contain and suffer. Tottenham have quality players. Not too much to say, all credit to the players."

Trevoh Chalobah and Nicolas Jackson scored as Chelsea dealt a huge blow to Tottenham's Champions League hopes, recording a 2-0 derby win over Mauricio Pochettino's old club at Stamford Bridge.

Exactly eight years on from the memorable "Battle of the Bridge" between the teams, which saw nine Spurs players booked in a fiery 2-2 draw that confirmed Leicester City as champions, Chelsea inflicted more woe upon their rivals.

Spurs paid for lacklustre set-piece defending midway through the first half as Chalobah headed Conor Gallagher's free-kick home, then Jackson pounced when Cole Palmer rattled the crossbar from another dead ball 72 minutes in.

Ange Postecoglou's side were far from their free-flowing best and have now lost three straight Premier League games. They stay fifth, seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa with just one game in hand.

Chelsea, meanwhile, climb above West Ham into eighth, just three points adrift of Manchester United in sixth.

The Blues went agonisingly close to a fifth-minute lead as Jackson raced through on goal to slot his effort under Guglielmo Vicario, but Micky van de Ven raced back to hook it off the line and Palmer could not sort his feet out on the rebound.

Chelsea were ahead after 24 minutes, though, as Chalobah met Gallagher's deep free-kick with a looping header into the top-right corner, the goal being confirmed by VAR following a check for a possible foul by Marc Cucurella.

Mykhailo Mudryk went close with a curling effort as Tottenham continued to toil, the visitors' best chance of the first half coming when Cristian Romero headed Pedro Porro's free-kick wide.

Ange Postecoglou cut an animated figure before half-time, and his side improved after the restart, but Chelsea could have had a second when Palmer shot over at the end of a promising break.

Chelsea did double their advantage with 18 minutes to play, the opportunistic Jackson heading into an unguarded net after Palmer's free-kick clattered off the woodwork with Vicario at full stretch.

Tottenham never looked like responding from there, and they now need a minor miracle to secure a top-four finish.

Pochettino haunts former employers

Having also overseen Chelsea's memorable 4-1 win in November's return fixture at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Pochettino completed a league double over his former employers.

He is the first coach to ever beat Spurs home and away in a single Premier League campaign having previously managed them in the competition.

The Argentine's first season at Stamford Bridge may not have gone entirely to plan, but there may just be green shoots of recovery emerging in the closing weeks of the campaign.

Having endured a run of one win in 14 home Premier League games between March and November last year (seven draws, six losses), Chelsea – who face West Ham next – have now won eight of their last 10 on their own turf (one draw, one defeat).

Set-pieces costing Spurs

Tottenham have a set-piece problem. Arsenal ruthlessly exploited some slack marking from their neighbours to score two goals from corners in Sunday's north London derby, and on Thursday, it was two free-kicks that undid Postecoglou's men.

Prior to this game, Spurs had conceded 12 goals from set-pieces, excluding penalties, in the Premier League this season. Only Manchester United (15.3) and Burnley (14.9) had allowed opponents a higher cumulative expected goals (xG) figure from such situations than their 14.3.

They did not learn their lesson, Emerson Royal and Brennan Johnson getting nowhere near Chalobah as he headed home from a routine delivery to the back post for the opener.

Those fine margins could prove incredibly costly, with Tottenham now a long way adrift of top-four rivals Aston Villa with daunting fixtures against Liverpool and Manchester City still to come. 

Erin Cuthbert gave Chelsea a priceless first-leg lead in their Champions League semi-final against Barcelona after inflicting a first home defeat for five years on the holders.

Cuthbert’s 40th-minute strike was enough to secure a 1-0 win at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys – Barca’s first defeat of the season – on an afternoon when the Blues produced a superb defensive display to deny the free-scoring defending champions a single shot on target.

Things might have been different, however, had referee Stephanie Frappart not been advised to review her decision to award the hosts a second-half penalty for handball to leave Emma Hayes and her players with something to defend at Stamford Bridge next Saturday.

Jess Carter and Kadeisha Buchanan had to be resilient at the heart of the Blues defence early on, although it took a well-timed intervention by Ingrid Engen to prevent Johanna Rytting Kaneryd from making the most of Cuthbert’s 10th-minute ball over the top.

Carter had to be in the right place at the right time to block Salma Paralluelo’s 16th-minute shot after a pacy break by Aitana Bonmati and Buchanan was equally alert to deny the same player after she had burst clear six minutes later.

The visitors were growing into the game with Mayra Ramirez making in-roads down the left and they got their reward five minutes before the break when Sjoeke Nusken held the ball up and then squared for Cuthbert, whose shot looped up off Engel and over keeper Catalina Coll.

But they looked to be in trouble seconds later when the referee awarded a penalty against Buchanan after she had blocked Patri Guijarro’s goal-bound effort with her arm, only for a lengthy VAR review, which showed that Paralluelo had been offside in the build-up, to come to their rescue.

Paralluelo volleyed horribly wide after being picked out at the far post by Caroline Graham Hansen and substitute Alexia Putellas missed the target with salvation beckoning with the final kick of the game.

Mauricio Pochettino hailed a “turning point” in Chelsea’s strained relationship with their fans after Cole Palmer’s stoppage-time double completed a hat-trick and sealed an unlikely 4-3 win against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge.

United looked to have the match won until, in the seventh minute of stoppage time, Diogo Dalot fell into Noni Madueke to concede a penalty from which Palmer scored to seemingly rescue a point.

But there was more drama to come. With almost the game’s final kick, Palmer blasted at goal and, via a deflection from Scott McTominay, scored to bury Erik ten Hag’s side and spark joyous scenes amongst home supporters.

Relations between fans and the club have soured as Chelsea’s fortunes have plummeted, but the response at the end was one of unbridled delight, with Pochettino predicting a fresh start off the back of this win.

“It was amazing,” he said. “We were the better team today and it was fair we scored in the the last minute.

“We started really well, 2-0 (up), the game was under control, then we made a mistake and suffered an emotional impact. It wasn’t easy to deal with. In the second half we controlled the game (but) conceded in transitions.

“It was important to finish like that, creating the connection between our fans and players. It’s a very good thing that happened today. It should be a turning point for the fans’ trust in the team.”

It had all looked like being a far simpler affair when his team raced into a two-goal lead inside 20 minutes, Conor Gallagher squeezing a shot beneath Andre Onana’s dive, then a penalty clipped into the corner by Palmer.

United were overwhelmed by Pochettino’s side attacking ferociously, but an error by Moises Caicedo changed the nature of the game as a loose ball straight to Alejandro Garnacho saw the forward race away to score.

The game was level minutes later as Bruno Fernandes stealed away at the far post to nod Dalot’s cross beyond Djordje Petrovic.

Garnacho’s header from Antony’s superb ball midway through the half looked like being the winner.

Then came Palmer’s crazy intervention at the death, as Chelsea breathed life into their bid to qualify for Europe.

“It was really unfair (to be losing),” said Pochettino. “Why were we losing the game. Football is like this. But we always kept believing.

“We were saying to the players ‘two minutes, two minutes’. (At 2-2) we believed we could score the winning goal.

“It was a must-win game if we wanted to reduce the gap above us. It was so, so important.”

A visibly downcast Ten Hag reflected on poor decision-making that led to his team’s defeat.

“We started poor, making individual errors,” he said. “But I had the feeling we were dominating and we fought ourselves back.

“We were in a winning poison with very good football and scoring great goals. Then in stoppage time, we didn’t bring the win over the line.

“You have to do your job, you have to make the right decisions, and we didn’t react quick enough to avoid this situation.

“We dominated the game, especially our wide players were a danger: Garnacho, Antony.

“We have to make better decisions. You saw how we score from counters. We can be such a massive threat and we’ve seen again today an example.

“But we have to read when to keep the ball, especially when you are winning. Keep the ball, pass and move and switch the play instead of giving it way.”

Mauricio Pochettino hailed a “turning point” in Chelsea’s strained relationship with their fans after Cole Palmer’s stoppage-time double completed a hat-trick and sealed a 4-3 win against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge.

United looked to have the match won until, in the seventh minute of stoppage time, Diogo Dalot fell into Noni Madueke to concede a penalty from which Palmer scored to seemingly rescue a point.

But there was more drama to come. With almost the game’s final kick, Palmer blasted at goal and, via a deflection from Scott McTominay, scored to bury Erik ten Hag’s side and spark joyous scenes amongst home supporters.

Relations between fans and the club have soured as Chelsea’s fortunes have plummeted, but the response at the end was one of unbridled delight, with Pochettino predicting a fresh start off the back of this win.

“It was amazing,” he said. “We were the better team today and it was fair we scored in the the last minute.

“We started really well, 2-0 (up), the game was under control, then we made a mistake and suffered an emotional impact. It wasn’t easy to deal with. In the second half we controlled the game (but) conceded in transitions.

“It was important to finish like that, creating the connection between our fans and players. It’s a very good thing that happened today. It should be a turning point for the fans’ trust in the team.”

It had all looked like being a far simpler affair when his team raced into a two-goal lead inside 20 minutes, Conor Gallagher squeezing a shot beneath Andre Onana’s dive, then a penalty clipped into the corner by Palmer.

United were overwhelmed by Pochettino’s side attacking ferociously, but an error by Moises Caicedo changed the nature of the game as a loose ball straight to Alejandro Garnacho saw the forward race away to score.

The game was level minutes later as Bruno Fernandes stealed away at the far post to nod Dalot’s cross beyond Djordje Petrovic.

Garnacho’s header from Antony’s superb ball midway through the half looked like being the winner.

Then came Palmer’s crazy intervention at the death, as Chelsea breathed life into their bid to qualify for Europe.

“It was really unfair (to be losing),” said Pochettino. “Why were we losing the game. Football is like this. But we always kept believing.

“We were saying to the players ‘two minutes, two minutes’. (At 2-2) we believed we could score the winning goal.

“It was a must-win game if we wanted to reduce the gap above us. It was so, so important.”

A visibly downcast Ten Hag reflected on poor decision-making that led to his team’s defeat.

“We started poor, making individual errors,” he said. “But I had the feeling we were dominating and we fought ourselves back.

“We were in a winning poison with very good football and scoring great goals. Then in stoppage time, we didn’t bring the win over the line.

“You have to do your job, you have to make the right decisions, and we didn’t react quick enough to avoid this situation.

“We dominated the game, especially our wide players were a danger: Garnacho, Antony.

“We have to make better decisions. You saw how we score from counters. We can be such a massive threat and we’ve seen again today an example.

“But we have to read when to keep the ball, especially when you are winning. Keep the ball, pass and move and switch the play instead of giving it way.”

Cole Palmer scored a sensational hat-trick as Chelsea struck twice in the final minutes of stoppage time to beat Manchester United 4-3 at Stamford Bridge.

United were 3-2 up and seemingly home and dry when Noni Madueke was felled by Diogo Dalot in the seventh minute of added time. Palmer scored from the penalty spot to seemingly rescue a point – but a stunning finale awaited.

The former Manchester City player – a United fan as a youngster – was given space inside the box and lashed it beyond Andre Onana with virtually the final kick, with the aid of a slight deflection off United’s Scott McTominay.

Their side had looked like running away with the Premier League contest in the first period, Conor Gallagher and Palmer from the penalty spot putting them into a 2-0 lead inside 20 minutes.

But a horrendous error from Moises Caicedo gifted United a way back, Alejandro Garnacho netting his first before Bruno Fernandes nodded unmarked past Djordje Petrovic to level before the break.

A breathless second half could have seen either side win it, and Garnacho looked to have done it for United when he headed in a brilliant cross from Antony midway through the half.

Then came scarcely believable drama at the end, with Palmer’s double sparking joyous scenes among home supporters.

Chelsea had looked irresistible for much of the first half and raced into a deserved lead.

First, Enzo Fernandez scooped a delicious ball into the right channel for the overlapping Malo Gusto. His low cutback pinged off the heel of Raphael Varane, spinning favourably into the path of Gallagher whose first-time drive slithered beneath Onana’s outstretched hand and into the net.

The second goal came from a similarly neat move down the other flank, this time Marc Cucurella feeding Mykhailo Mudryk who bolted onto it and flicked the ball back inside to Cucurella. Across to challenge came Antony, felling the Chelsea defender with an artless trip. Palmer dinked his penalty into the bottom corner with consummate ease.

United struggled with the pace and directness of Chelsea’s transitions but the hosts’ control of the game was punctured on 34 minutes.

Caicedo sensed Antony lurking on his shoulder and played a hurried, careless ball square that sold Benoit Badiashile short. Garnacho was onto it like a flash, tearing clear of the hapless Chelsea pair and slotting past Petrovic.

Onana pushed out Fernandez’s low hit and had to be bailed out by Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who shovelled the rebound away from Mykhailo Mudryk as Chelsea quickly resumed their assault.

But the goal had swung the game towards United and they were soon level. Antony swept the ball wide to Garnacho, who stood up Cucurella and knocked it back for Diogo Dalot. His cross whizzed across the box to Fernandes, arriving unmarked at the far post, to wipe out Chelsea’s lead.

Gallagher rattled the post when set up by Palmer late in the half, though they were clearly stunned by United’s rapid double and looked grateful to go in level at the break.

The second half was a gung-ho battle between defence and attack. At times, the midfield simply vanished as both sides ripped into each other, and by the hour mark either could have led, Fernandes and Palmer with the clearest chances lashed over as the game hummed with energy, coaxing a winner.

It looked to have arrived from Garnacho. Antony’s cross, whipped with the outside of his left boot, was elegant and pinpoint. Chelsea had two defenders back but neither tracked the run of Garnacho, who stooped bravely to reach the ball before Petrovic and guide it into the corner. The United fans, including new Kansas City Chiefs recruit Louis Rees-Zammit, were delighted.

It looked like staying that way until the final minute of stoppage time, when Palmer’s dramatic double sealed an astonishing turnaround.

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany has been charged with misconduct by the Football Association following his side’s 2-2 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Tempers flared after referee Darren England awarded a penalty to the Blues in the 40th minute for Lorenz Assignon’s foul on Mykhailo Mudryk. The Burnley defender was also shown a second yellow card, forcing the Clarets to play the second half with 10 men.

Kompany was sent off for protesting on the touchline and afterwards expressed his opinion that officials have not been good enough throughout the season.

“I’ll keep saying what I think,” Kompany said.

“I’m not shying away from it and I’ve said it to the referees themselves, the officials, refereeing hasn’t been good enough this season.

“And I have said that in, I think, a constructive way, understanding as well the fact it’s not easy for them. The scrutiny is massive, the pressure is bigger than it’s ever been on the officials.

“I think the addition of VAR and more opinions and more officials doesn’t make it easy for them to do their jobs.

“I haven’t got any issues with being fined. I just want it to be right.”

The FA announced on Wednesday that the Burnley boss has been charged with improper conduct.

A statement read: “It is alleged that the manager’s language and/or behaviour around the 40th minute was improper and/or abusive and/or insulting towards a match official and/or questioned their integrity.”

Kompany has until 6pm on Friday, April 5 to respond to the charge.

Mauricio Pochettino conceded Chelsea are missing something after they failed to defeat 10-man Burnley in what he reflected had been a “must-win” game at Stamford Bridge, which ended 2-2.

Cole Palmer’s goal, drilled into the bottom corner from Raheem Sterling’s delightful flick with 12 minutes to play, looked to have nicked it for the hosts, restoring the lead after Josh Cullen had whacked Burnley level on the volley early in the second half.

Palmer had earlier given Chelsea the lead from the penalty spot, converting after Lorenz Assignon had fouled Mykhailo Mudryk and been shown a second yellow card, whilst a furious Vincent Kompany was also dismissed from the touchline for remonstrating.

But Pochettino was left to rue another frustrating result when, minutes after Palmer had made it 2-1, Dara O’Shea got forward from a corner, evaded everybody in blue inside the box and headed the ball through the clumsy grasp of goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic to salvage the visitors a point.

“Today we didn’t show the capacity, the energy, the hunger,” said Pochettino. “Not the minimum to compete in the Premier League. In defensive phases, we concede too much.

“That is why I’m so upset and disappointed. It’s more here (in the heart) and here (in the head) than in your legs. It’s about being strong like a group, strong like a team.

“We are too slow evolving in this area. That was the key today. The team played well, we had energy. When we have the ball, we go forwards.

“But when we didn’t have the ball, we don’t have the same energy. Today, sorry, I am not happy with the performance when we don’t have the ball.

“It’s difficult to accept not to win. It was a must-win game to be in a position to attack (the table).”

At five games, Chelsea’s unbeaten league run is now the longest they have enjoyed in almost 18 months, but there was little positive cheer shown by fans at the end towards Pochettino and his players.

In failing to beat the Premier League’s second-bottom side, they lost further ground in what looks an increasingly doomed bid to qualify for Europe via their league placing.

Pochettino felt that his team’s problems in turning performances into points ultimately had a psychological root.

“(The players) need to realise that competing is different to playing football,” he said. “We can be there and play, but we need to increase our level.

“It’s not about blaming the players. Maybe we (the coaching staff) need to be tougher with them.

“We need to be more ruthless, find better communication, be more competitive.

“We are missing something. That’s why we are where we are. When we don’t have the ball we need to increase our capacity to recover it.”

Burnley’s assistant manager Craig Bellamy reflected on a performance of which the travelling supporters could be proud.

“To be able to show the patience they showed, working together, the organisation, the commitment, you couldn’t be nothing short of proud watching it,” he said.

Chelsea were held to a 2-2 draw by Burnley at Stamford Bridge as Vincent Kompany’s side twice came from behind with 10 men to frustrate the hosts.

At five league games it became Chelsea’s longest unbeaten run in the league in almost 18 months, but there was little good cheer directed towards Mauricio Pochettino and his players by fans at the final whistle, after they saw Dara O’Shea snatch a point for Burnley late on.

Cole Palmer had earlier scored twice, the first a penalty after defender Lorenz Assignon had been dismissed for fouling Mykhailo Mudryk, then making it 2-1 after being set up by a delightful flick from the under-fire Raheem Sterling.

In between, Josh Cullen volleyed Burnley level against the run of play early in the second half, as their top-flight survival bid received an unlikely boost.

The first opportunity had been Burnley’s. A long ball up from halfway drifted over the head of Benoit Badiashile and was lashed across goal and wide by Jacob Bruun Larsen.

Next to go close was Enzo Fernandez. His shot from the edge of the box took a wicked deflection towards the top corner, before being brilliantly turned onto the crossbar and behind by Arijanet Muric.

It was a bright Chelsea opening, Palmer and Conor Gallagher readily a threat when linking up whilst Mudryk, fresh from scoring the goal that sent Ukraine to Euro 2024, showed speed and tricky footwork rampaging down the left.

Yet Burnley were not blunt. Wilson Odobert drew a fine, flying save from goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic, finding space to fire from range after stepping inside Malo Gusto, who allowed him past too easily.

Nicolas Jackson too might have done better when he raced on to Palmer’s incisive through-ball, danced round two defenders and aimed for the corner, again though Muric saved.

Axel Disasi thought he had given Chelsea the lead midway through the first half, turning the ball in at the far post from Mudryk’s cross, only for VAR to rule it had gone in off the defender’s arm.

Mudryk fired straight at Muric after being teed up by Jackson jinking in off the right, as Chelsea’s shot count rose to 12 inside the opening 35 minutes.

The sense that Burnley were clinging on grew, and shortly before half-time their task was made exponentially harder.

Assignon initially looked to have Mudryk under control as the pair raced to reach the ball in the left channel. Mudryk stepped across him, and Assignon heaved him away and to the ground with a raised arm at neck height.

In the chaos that followed, the defender was shown a second yellow card, the fulminating Kompany too saw red, leaving Burnley a man down and with their manager banished from the touchline. With his impudent penalty, Palmer added insult to injury to give Chelsea the lead.

It was richly deserved, and so Burnley’s equaliser immediately after the break stunned the home crowd. Cullen played a one-two with Josh Brownhill 25 yards out, receiving it back and crashing an instinctive volley beyond Petrovic with the second half barely two minutes old.

The visitors would have been ahead had Petrovic not saved brilliantly one-handed from Odobert’s close-range header, then at the other end Muric was again Burnley’s saviour, beating away Jackson’s low first-time drive.

Home fans were contemplating another frustrating result when Sterling, on for Moises Caicedo, diverted the ball beautifully into the feet of Palmer with a devilish flick, and Chelsea’s top scorer crashed it into the bottom corner to restore the lead.

It lasted under three minutes. At once Burnley were up the other end winning a corner, and from it nobody in blue followed O’Shea as he ran across four defenders and headed the ball through Petrovic’s fumbled grasp to level.

Sterling should have won it when he burst onto Palmer’s far-post cross but inexplicably nodded wide, before Jay Rodriguez headed against the crossbar in the 88th minute as Burnley threatened the improbable.