Chelsea entered today’s match inside the top four with a chance to maintain being three points ahead of Newcastle after their 2-1 victory against Tottenham.

Instead, the Blues drew 1-1 for the second time this season against Crystal Palace after a late goal from Jean-Philippe Mateta following a Cole Palmer mistake on the ball.

In this series, I will cover three things we learnt from each match, to see if there any patterns, positive or negative, between now and the end of the season.

Josh Acheampong is ready

Chelsea fans on social media have been calling for Josh Acheampong to get Premier League minutes and today he got them, but not even in the form of a cameo.. Enzo Maresca decided to start him at right centre back over Tosin and Axel Disasi.

Acheampong delivered and then some. Chelsea’s latest academy gem was fantastic on the ball, aiding Levi Colwill’s calming presence with some of his own, elegantly carrying the ball out the back and breaking lines with passes.

Though he struggled aerially against Mateta, the all round performance of Acheampong was supremely impressive for an 18-year-old starting his first ever league game away from home at centre back, even though he is a natural right back.

Chelsea recently announced an extension to his contract until 2029 and Josh proved today that he is truly ready for this level, some may want a larger sample size but I feel that some players just have “it” and Acheampong seems to be one.

Let’s not forget that in a short twelve minute cameo against Tottenham at Stamford Bridge last season, Acheampong registered more blocks than any Chelsea or Tottenham player in the entire match.

This is not a one off, this is a player that has been in the making for a long time and looks to be the next big star through Cobham’s conveyor belt of elite talent.

The Pedro Neto conundrum

Pedro Neto is an interesting Footballer. What I will say is that it is evident that he suits Enzo Maresca’s style of play due to his work rate off the ball and the fact that he is technically secure.

However, Chelsea have a bit of an issue. Fans are starting to have a go at Pedro Neto for his lack of end product and although true, as he only has one league goal this season, albeit against Arsenal, this lack of goal threat applies to all of Chelsaea’s wingers.

Jadon Sancho has just the one league goal this season and Mykhailo Mudryk is currently suspended and has never got above five league goals.

Whilst Noni Madueke does have five, he blows extremely hot and cold with his end product and has already been sidelined three times from squads this season for attitude and disciplinary issues.

All of Chelsea’s wingers are good individually – lots of talent, fast, work hard, technically secure in tight spaces, able to combine with teammates but they all lack a consistent goal threat which then causes more pressure on Nicolas Jackson, Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez to score.

Back to Neto individually and based on evidence thus far, his best attribute is crossing and in many games he does not have the opportunity to cross into the box because of Jackson’s lack of striker instinct and box presence.

When he does, they are often not met. This for me is a recruitment issue, Chelsea need a box striker, a dominant force in the air with natural striker instincts, a la Chris Wood.

Olivier Giroud was one of Chelsea’s most valuable signings in the last few years, and it is evident to everyone watching that Chelsea lack that mould of player.

Maresca’s in-game management

Ah, Enzo Maresca. Chelsea have had a good start to the season and are on track for the pre-season target of finishing the top four, that has to be said.

However, Chelsea have now taken two points from twelve against Everton, Fulham, Ipswich and now Crystal Palace and recently Maresca’s in-game management has come into question.

For all the lauding of Chelsea’s attacking depth, Maresca does not use Joao Felix as much as he should (mainly citing balance reasons), whilst Christopher Nkunku gets pitty minutes up front, often looking lost in his system.

Kiernan Dewsbury Hall is injured but even when he was fit, Maresca did not include him in some match day squads despite him being one of his most important players last season for Leicester.

This week has seen loan rumours for Renato Veiga who again, has been used sparingly in the league. Meanwhile, Noni Madueke was handed a measly four minutes despite Pedro Neto struggling to produce anything meaningful all match.

Maybe things will improve, but Maresca is showing signs of a coach who does not trust his squad in league matches and is not aligned with the directors and the players that they signed during the Summer transfer window.