What Jadon Sancho did in Chelsea draw that Enzo Maresca loved as head coach shows ruthless side

Here are a few of the main talking points from Chelsea's 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon

Chelsea missed out on the chance to close to within two points of league leaders Liverpool following a 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest on Sunday afternoon. It was some finish to the game at Stamford Bridge and one Enzo Maresca's side should have taken maximum points from.

Going behind to Chris Wood's strike in the 49th minute, Noni Madueke got the goal his performance deserved eight minutes later with a low finish that gave Matz Sels no chance. Chelsea looked the side most likely to snatch the win late on, especially following James Ward-Prowse's red card, with Cole Palmer denied in quick succession by the Forest goalkeeper.

Things did reach boiling point shortly before the 90th minute after Neco Williams tripped Marc Cucurella in front of the Chelsea dugout and that subsequently saw Maresca go to ground after the Spaniard flew into him. Levi Colwill immediately went to grab Williams, with players from both sides and also those in the dugouts immediately getting involved in the altercation.

Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson, who endured a rather frustrating afternoon, appeared to strike Nottingham Forest's Morato but the incident was missed by the officials. Once the situation had calmed down, both teams had chances to win the game late on in the 13 minutes of allotted stoppage time.

Chelsea's substitutes all combined for their two chances, with Pedro Neto firstly swinging in a delightful ball that Joao Felix really should have done better with as he headed wide from close range. Christopher Nkunku was then guilty of missing from a similar distance when unmarked in the box after Mykhailo Mudryk picked him out from the left.

Forest also had opportunities of their own to win the game but were denied all three points thanks to Robert Sanchez's heroics. Firstly thwarting Williams with a brilliant save after the full-back had found himself with time in the box, the Spaniard then tipped Jota Silva's glancing header wide of the post right at the death.

READ MORE: Madueke magic, Sanchez heroics and one player quiet - Chelsea player ratings vs Nottingham Forest

READ MORE: Every word Enzo Maresca said on late scuffle, Jackson incident, Colwill and Madueke injury issues

Very much an incredible end to the encounter as the sides played out a draw, Chelsea's lack of discipline was a big talking point after the game. The west London club had six men booked in total and now look set to cop a £50,000 fine from the FA after receiving a £25,000 punishment last month for the same offence in the win at Bournemouth.

Not only that, Chelsea will be without both Cucurella and Wesley Fofana for the trip to Liverpool after the international break after both received their fifth yellow cards of the Premier League season in the draw. Five cards from the first seven games of the term is some going and it is something Maresca ideally needs to address sooner rather than later before it becomes even more costly.

Friends reunited

Chelsea's Premier League clash against Nottingham Forest saw a number of friends reunited prior to the game in west London. Just before the team news announcement at 12:45pm, a smattering of Forest players made their way out onto the pitch to take a look at the playing surface.

Former Chelsea players Ola Aina and Callum Hudson-Odoi were two of those on the pitch, with winger Anthony Elanga also joining them in the centre circle. A handful of Chelsea players then made their way out and joined the trio on the halfway line.

Tosin Adarabioyo and Madueke embraced their Forest counterparts and so did ex-Manchester United teammates Jadon Sancho and Elanga. The pair shared a big hug and then walked a few yards on with their arms around each other.

They were later seen embracing again and clearly enjoying their time back together. Palmer then came and joined the huddle of players in the centre circle and the Chelsea ace could be seen spending a good period of time chatting to Elanga.

Come the match, Madueke and Sancho were to have a big say on proceedings for Chelsea. The former took the game to the visitors and caused them a host of issues with his quick feet and ability to beat his man proving rather troublesome for Nuno Espirito Santo's men.

Madueke was undoubtedly Chelsea's brightest player in the first half, with Sancho again catching the eye in the opening 45 minutes due to the attributes in his locker. Sancho caused Aina a host of issues and there was even one moment where a quick swivel of the hips saw Ryan Yates bamboozled and fall to the ground in the area.

The piece of play may not have resulted in something meaningful for Chelsea but Maresca certainly appreciated it as he could be seen on the touchline with his hands above his head applauding the winger. Sancho's influence on the game waned in the second half but Madueke continued to go from strength to strength, notably scoring the equaliser with a curling effort that found the bottom corner of Sels' goal.

Maresca is clearly set on Madueke and Sancho as his first-choice wingers despite having Neto, Felix, Mudryk and Nkunku as further options out wide. Continue their current form and the aforementioned quartet may find it very hard to get back into the XI in the Premier League.

Ruthless Maresca

Thursday was a day to remember for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall as he scored his first Chelsea goal in the win over Gent. Quite clearly desperate to get off the mark in a Blues shirt if his reaction to his miss in the first half was anything to go by, the summer signing really enjoyed the moment when he did manage to net in the second half and Maresca did as well after jumping for joy on the touchline.

Putting himself in a very good position to be named in the Chelsea squad against Forest, Dewsbury-Hall was unfortunately cut from the 20-man party once again after his absence against Brighton & Hove Albion one week ago. It was ruthless from Maresca.

The decision just goes to highlight the amount of players currently available to the Italian and also that Dewsbury-Hall has quite a fight on his hands trying to make it at Stamford Bridge. For now, the Europa Conference League may be the 26-year-old's best chance of regular football in a Chelsea shirt.

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