Our under-21s suffered a narrow defeat against London rivals Chelsea at Kingsmeadow on Friday night.
Although we took an early lead through Nathan Butler-Oyedeji, Chelsea responded with goals from Donnell McNeilly and Brodi Hughes to complete the comeback and secure the win.
What happened
We got off to a dream start, taking the lead just six minutes into the game. Salah-Eddine delivered a brilliant lofted through ball to Butler-Oyedeji, who outpaced his marker on the left and fired a precise shot inside the near post with his weaker foot.
Moments later, we came close to doubling our advantage. Ismail Oulad M’Hand found his brother, Salah, with a well-placed pass, but Salah's one-on-one attempt drifted wide.
Our attack continued to press, and another chance came when Oulad M’Hand chipped a perfectly weighted ball over the defence to Butler-Oyedeji. Drawing the keeper out, he unselfishly squared it to Khayon Edwards. Edwards’ shot was heroically blocked by a sliding challenge, and Jimi Gower’s follow-up was blocked as well in a chaotic goalmouth scramble.
The home side threatened to equalise when a corner to the far post found McNeilly, but Lucas Nygaard responded with a brilliant reflex save to tip it away. Shortly after, Chelsea’s keeper Max Merrick matched his efforts, pulling off an excellent save to stop Salah’s strike from finding the top corner.
Just before halftime, Chelsea found their equaliser. Shumaira Mhueka sent a flick down the line to Tyrique George, who cut it back for McNeilly. This time, McNeilly made no mistake, finding the bottom corner to level the score.
After the break, the home side began to control possession, though they struggled to carve out clear-cut chances. However, with just fifteen minutes remaining, they found a breakthrough when Hughes’ cross took an unexpected route and ended up in the back of the net.
We pressed hard for an equaliser, and in added time, Michal Rosiak came close with a well-struck free kick. But despite our efforts, we left Kingsmeadow empty-handed.
What it means
This defeat keeps us in sixth place, with 15 points after eight games.
what's next
Our under-21s return to action at 7:45 pm on Tuesday, November 12, with an away fixture against Colchester United in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy. Meanwhile, some players from the squad may also feature in Wednesday’s UEFA Youth League tie with the under-19s against Inter Milan.
line-ups
Chelsea XI: Merrick, Olise (Ampah, 76), Hughes, Wilson, Samuels-Smith, Dyer, Vale, Russell-Denny (Rak-Sakyi 81), Mhueka, McNeilly (Morgan, 76), George.
Substitutes (not used): Murray-Campbell, Washington.
Arsenal XI: Nygaard, Robinson, Monlouis (Quesada-Thorn, 65) Heaven, Nichols, Rosiak, Oulad M'Hand, Salah (Gower, 60), Kabia (Dudziak, 87), Butler-Oyedeji, Edwards (Harriman-Annous, 63).
Subs (not used): Okonkwo.
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