SOCCER: Chelsea suffer familiar failings as Leeds battle back for 2-2 draw

LONDON – Chelsea looked set to claim their fifth straight Premier League win under Liam Rosenior, but a depleted Leeds United fought back from a 2-0 deficit to earn a 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

The result means Chelsea have now dropped 17 points from winning positions this season, 15 of them at home.

Rosenior had praised his squad’s "extreme mental toughness" earlier this week, after they recovered from losing positions to beat West Ham United in the Premier League and Napoli in the Champions League. Tuesday’s failure to hold a two-goal lead, however, felt like a setback for the Blues.

"We have to just make sure we take care of moments and be professional," Rosenior said. "If we can just focus and concentrate for 90 minutes, this team has unbelievable potential, which you saw for probably 90% of the game today."

Chelsea looked in control after Joao Pedro opened the scoring in the 24th minute, linking up with a rejuvenated Cole Palmer for his sixth goal since Rosenior replaced Enzo Maresca last month. Palmer extended the lead to 2-0 in the 58th minute, converting a penalty after Pedro was fouled by Leeds’ stand-in center-back Jaka Bijol.

Leeds, however, struck back quickly. Lukas Nmecha converted a penalty in the 67th minute, and substitute Noah Okafor leveled the match in the 73rd after Chelsea failed to clear their lines.

Chelsea pushed for a winner in the final minutes, but Palmer missed a close-range chance in injury time. The draw leaves the Blues in fifth place, one point behind Manchester United, who salvaged a 1-1 draw at West Ham United.

Rosenior said, "The ridiculous thing for us is that they’ve managed to score two goals in a five-minute period, and for the other 90 minutes of the game we were by far the better team." He also confirmed that Spain left-back Marc Cucurella suffered a hamstring problem and will undergo a scan.

Leeds boss Daniel Farke praised his side’s determination despite missing several key players due to injury. "If you go two-nil down, of course it can also sometimes be a long night, but with our players we have this never-say-die attitude," he said.

The point lifted Leeds to 15th place, one point above Tottenham Hotspur, who lost 2-1 at home to Newcastle United. -Writing by William Schomberg; Editing by Ken Ferris/Reuters