Chelsea throw away two-goal lead to drop points at Leeds

Chelsea’s promising start to life under Liam Rosenior was derailed as Leeds fought from two down to earn a 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge and deny the Blues a fifth straight Premier League win.

Until midway through the second half this had looked like being another step forward for a team who had been steadily growing into an exciting, watchable outfit under their new head coach.

Joao Pedro got the opener with a lovely finish before Cole Palmer’s penalty made it two to have the hosts seemingly coasting to victory against a Leeds side who had offered next to nothing.

Chelsea have looked newly confident in possession since Rosenior’s appointment but the manner in which they threw away two points was alarming.

Lukas Nmecha’s penalty after Jayden Bogle had been fouled made it 2-1, then a moment of unbelievably casual defending allowed Jayden Bogle to create chaos from which Noah Okafor pounced to level, as old habits reared their head for the home side.

Chelsea went ahead after 24 minutes. Enzo Fernandez knocked it short for Palmer who turned and found the forward run of Pedro with a perfectly weighted through ball. The striker measured his run to keep onside before clipping a fine finish over the advancing Karl Darlow for his 10th league goal of the season.

Much frustration has been spent by home fans in west London this season over the slow, ponderous speed of their team’s passing. Under Rosenior there have been encouraging signals of a more dynamic approach to possession and here again the ball moved with urgency, particularly through midfield where Chelsea constantly seemed to outnumber Leeds.

The hosts had dominated creatively without much input form Estevao, so often their saviour in moments of inertia during Palmer’s