Chelsea player ratings vs Bournemouth: No Cole Palmer magic today! England star kept under wraps as blunt Blues misfire & waste chance to gain serious ground on Arsenal

Chelsea made it three Premier League games without a victory as they were held to a tepid 0-0 draw at Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon. Cole Palmer made his first start since September but the England star was unable to inspire the Blues as Enzo Maresca’s side failed to get back to winning ways following Wednesday’s 3-1 loss at the hands of Leeds.

Slow out of the blocks, Chelsea thought they had gone 1-0 behind when Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo found the back of the net after four minutes. However, after a lengthy check from the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), the strike was ruled out after Cherries forward Evanilson was adjudged to have strayed offside in the build-up.

And things soon went from bad to worse for the west Londoners when Liam Delap had to be substituted with a shoulder injury, with Marc Guiu brought on as his replacement. Rounding off a woeful opening 45 minutes, Chelsea were let off the hook again when Evanilson somehow failed to convert from just two yards out.

In a much more positive opening to the second half, Chelsea winger Pedro Neto forced a good save from Bournemouth goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic before Alejandro Garnacho hit the post with a header. Showing flashes of quality following his return from injury, Palmer was then replaced on the hour mark by Joao Pedro as Chelsea kept pushing for the all-important breakthrough.

However, Bournemouth – winless in their previous five league games – were able to stop Maresca’s men in their tracks as Chelsea recorded their first stalemate in the top flight since the 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace on the opening weekend of the season. Maresca’s charges are now fourth in the table and eight points behind leaders Arsenal, who were beaten 2-1 by Aston Villa earlier in the day.

GOAL rates Chelsea’s players from the Vitality Stadium…