Chelsea legend John Obi Mikel has shared his thoughts on the ongoing project at the club after Boxing Day's defeat to Fulham at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues clung to Cole Palmer’s record-setting goal for most of the first half but surrendered their lead starting with an 82nd-minute equaliser from Calum Wilson and Muniz’s 95th-minute winner.
According to Opta Joe, it was the first time since 1999 that the Blues have lost a game they were ahead in the 82nd minute; the last one was the 3-2 loss to Arsenal, thanks to Nwankwo Kanu’s hat-trick.
The match was also Fulham’s first win at Stamford Bridge since 1979, underlining the effect of the defeat on Chelsea's history.
82 - Chelsea have lost a Premier League game they were leading as late as the 82nd minute for the first time since October 1999, when they were ahead until the 83rd minute against Arsenal but lost 3-2 with Kanu scoring a hat-trick. Memories. pic.twitter.com/qB2eFeWSAd
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 26, 2024
Mikel backs Chelsea’s project
Speaking on the Obi One Podcast, Mikel Obi is unfazed by the home loss to Fulham and believes that the team is going in the right direction thanks to the project by Todd Boehly and Co.
“We’re all talking about it, the two billion that we’ve spent, now we can see that the project is working,” he said
“It was a clear picture that they knew exactly what they wanted to do, and they’ve done it. They’ve gotten rid of the players they don’t want, that the club don’t need, that Maresca said from the start of the season, ‘I don’t want these players’, they’ve gotten rid of these players.
“Now the players we have in the team, everybody is performing well, the team is playing well, and we can see that the project that they have is moving on fine.”
“Credit to them, credit to Todd, credit to Behdad, to Paul and the test of the team, they’ve done an absolutely fantastic job,” he added.
This is a U-turn from Mikel, who had been critical of the recruitment strategy at the club and the performances of some players, including Nicolas Jackson.
