3 lessons learned from Chelsea’s disappointing derby loss to West Ham

The Hammers do the ‘double’ over Chelsea for the first time since 2003!

Chelsea’s ambitions of Champions League finish sustained another dent after a disappointing 3-2 loss to West Ham at the Olympic Stadium.

The Blues also missed the chance to go third after Leicester City’s defeat earlier in the day, and instead, now find Wolves and Manchester United breathing right below their necks.

Thomas Soucek, Michael Antonio, and Andriy Yarmolenko were all on target for the Hammers, while Willian struck twice for the visitors.

The victory also bolsters West Ham’s survival hopes, as they go three points above relegation zone. Here are the talking points from the match:

Chelsea’s defense is their own worst enemy

The Blues were all over the place last night. The fact that they conceded thrice to a West Ham side that have struggled for goals all season is a damning indictment of the dire defensive shape of the team. Thomas Soucek exposed Chelsea’s painful inability at defending set-pieces by netting twice in quick succession. Even though his first one was ruled offside, the Czech’s second headed effort was unstoppable.

Then the Michael Antonio strike too, was a result of shambolic defending as he was left with acres of space to latch on and score, before Andriy Yarmolenko put the final nail in their coffin. It was an absolute horror show at the back, with Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen particularly the culprits with appalling lack of positional awareness. Lampard must go back to the drawing board and think about fixing this leaky defense sooner than later.

Where there’s Willian, there’s a way

While his Chelsea days might seem numbered, Willian continues to prove his worth to the side. He was once again the brightest spark in the team, and twice put the visitors in front. The Brazilian dispatched another penalty – his second consecutive in the league – before executing an awesome free-kick in the second half.

Willian has been utterly decisive for the Blues since the last three games on the trot, and even though his efforts last night didn’t yield a win, showed that he’s still an elite player. Its a shame that he’ll be leaving on a free transfer this summer.

Boost for Hammers, bust for Chelsea

This was a much-needed boost for West Ham, as the victory takes them to up to 16th in the table and three points clear of the drop zone. Beleaguered manager David Moyes can finally heave a sigh of relief while this win might as well be the turning point of the season for the Hammers.

Whereas for Chelsea, the loss serves to compound their struggle for Champions League finish as Wolves and Manchester United are now just two points adrift with only six games remaining. To make matters worse, their last three games are against Liverpool and the aforesaid pair. So even though the title is already sewn up, the race for top four is bracing for a squeaky bum time.