O’Shea scores late as 10-man Burnley hold Chelsea
Dara O’Shea struck a late equaliser as 10-man Burnley secured a vital point away at Chelsea in the Premier League.
O’Shea headed in from Josh Cullen’s corner for relegation-threatened Burnley, three minutes after Cole Palmer had put the Blues back in front with a finish across goalkeeper Arijanet Muric.
Palmer had given Chelsea the lead in the first half, scoring a Panenka penalty after Lorenz Assignon received a second yellow card for fouling Mykhailo Mudryk in the box.
Shortly after the interval Burnley were back on level terms through Cullen’s superb finish on the volley, but late goals for both sides meant the points were shared.
Vincent Kompany’s Burnley are 19th in the table, four points behind 17th-placed Nottingham Forest, while Chelsea remain 11th.
Assignon’s yellow cards came in the opening 40 minutes, with both fouls on Mudryk, and Kompany was then dismissed for his reaction to the dismissal.
The first half was a lively encounter, Jacob Bruun Larsen dragging a shot wide for the away side before Enzo Fernandez’s strike hit the bar.
England internationals Palmer and Conor Gallagher combined well in a fluid Chelsea move but Palmer shot wide of the target.
Wilson Odobert’s shot from the edge of the box was then palmed behind by home goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic as the away side attempted to get on the scoresheet.
It was a much-improved performance for Burnley, who frustrated Chelsea and were well worth their point.
Assignon is the sixth Burnley player to be sent off in the Premier League this season, more than any other team in the competition.
Despite their clear frustration at events in the first half, Kompany’s side came out fighting in the second period and were back on level terms within two minutes thanks to Cullen’s brilliant finish.
O’Shea’s late header secured a vital point against tough opponents and Jay Rodriguez had a chance to win it late on when his header thumped against the bar and he was unable to turn the rebound home.
They will take great confidence from their determined performance before they host Wolves on Tuesday (19:45 BST).
Palmer shines again as Blues draw
Cole Palmer celebrates soring his second goal for Chelsea
Cole Palmer has been involved in 21 Premier League goals this season (13 goals, eight assists)
Before the game, Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino said: “If you look at all the data, in the table we should be in fourth position.”
Another inconsistent performance emphasised exactly why they remain in the bottom half of the table.
The Blues had more than enough chances, with 33 shots their most in a Premier League game in more than 10 years.
They conceded just three minutes after going in front, dropping more points against a struggling side after drawing at Brentford at the start of the month.
Mudryk, who scored the winner for Ukraine to send them to Euro 2024 this week, replaced Raheem Sterling in the starting line-up and was key to Chelsea’s best chances in the first half.
His whipped ball into the box was put in the net by Axel Disasi but was ruled out for offside after a lengthy video assistant referee (VAR) check.
He then won the penalty with Assignon unable to cope with his pace.
One constant bright light for Pochettino is Palmer. He kept his composure to score from the spot and produced a fine finish from Sterling’s clever backheel.
Boos rang out at the final whistle and there will be huge expectations for a better home display when Manchester United visit on Thursday (20:15 BST).