The Blues have struggled in recent weeks, with their latest defeat compounding their on-field issues, particularly on their own home turf
The struggles continued for Chelsea this weekend as they fell to their perennial bogey team Bournemouth once again to make it four Premier League losses in five – and match an unwanted mark in the process.
Frank Lampard’s side may have reached the next stage of the Champions League on the continent but have struggled in recent weeks to translate that success into domestic promise.
Though they remain in the top four for now, results elsewhere mean they lead fifth-place Sheffield United by only four points, with Manchester United liable to trim the gap further if they win on Sunday.
Their rocky run was best summed up in another loss at Stamford Bridge against Eddie Howe’s side, who have remained one of the most frustrating opponents for the Blues in recent years.
Since the Cherries were promoted to the Premier League in 2015, Chelsea have not lost more at home to any other side save Liverpool, having drawn a blank on three occasions.
In addition, defeat means that Lampard has now seen his side lose five of their 14 homes games across all competitions this season, only one fewer than they had over 62 games combined throughout the 2017-18 and 2018-19 campaigns in total.
The Blues have also now failed to score in two of their last three at Stamford Bridge, having previously scored in 14 consecutive home league games – and two losses in their last three Premier League games on their own turf is as many as they registered in their prior 28 games in the same competition in West London.
Since victory over Crystal Palace in early November, Chelsea have now lost to Manchester City, West Ham and Everton in addition to Bournemouth, though they have defeated Aston Villa in the same period.
In addition, they drew with Valencia and defeated Lille in the Champions League to secure their place in the last 16 alongside the Spanish outfit, one point ahead of Dutch heavyweights Ajax.
Chelsea now face two London derbies with Tottenham and Arsenal over the Christmas period, along with a home encounter against Southampton, before they travel to Brighton on New Year’s Day.
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