Chelsea’s Growing Pains Face Forest Fire Test In Crunch Finale

A Champions League spot and the cash injection that comes with it are on the line and Enzo Maresca’s side must win to silence immaturity accusations

Enzo Maresca had better hope his young players are quick learners. Chelsea must be ready for the storm when they head into their showdown at Nottingham Forest on Sunday afternoon. The atmosphere will be ferocious and the pressure to perform intense. Forest are a tough, underdog team whose manager, Nuno Espírito Santo, says they are trying to make “something magical” happen. A huge reward is up for grabs but they are not burdened by expectation. Chelsea, on the other hand, must be aware that they will be in for a kicking if they produce a repeat of their 2-0 defeat at Newcastle two weeks ago and lose their nerve in another tough away game.

This is a pivotal moment for Chelsea. Victory would seal a Champions League place for the first time since they were bought by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital three years ago. It would give them a vital cash injection and the owners something substantial to point to when people wonder about the club’s direction. Anything less would throw up more of the same old accusations about being too young, too capricious and too chaotic to succeed despite spending more than £1bn. Lads, it’s post-Roman Abramovich Chelsea; did you really expect them to stand up when it counted?