Hendrick’s sweet volley handed Burnley the lead against the run of play, Chelsea failing to clear a corner.

If reports of Manchester City’s demise in the title race before Christmas were premature then the ones about the long-term future of Maurizio Sarri as Chelsea manager may be proven completely accurate in the coming weeks.

Chelsea were booed off the pitch at Stamford Bridge after being held to a goalless draw by struggling Southampton, for whom young keeper Angus Gunn was outstanding on his Premier League debut.

Alex Iwobi scored the winning penalty for Arsenal as they defeated Chelsea 6-5 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in front of a crowd of 46,000 people at the Aviva Stadium.

There will be 100 Premier League players in action at the World Cup, spread across 25 international teams.

Jerome Boateng has provided a boost to Germany's World Cup squad by stepping up his return to training following a hamstring injury.

Pallotta’s backroom group is focusing more on computer analysis of players and opponents, using methods developed by an American data team, writes David Shonfield

Three goals from across that spectrum between ‘sublime’ and ‘ridiculous’ gave Tottenham their first away victory over Chelsea in almost 30 years, and allayed any fears that the Premier League champions might catch their London rivals in the race for continental qualification.

Chelsea produced the kind of attacking performance in Europe that Manchester United fans were screaming for 24 hours earlier, but found centurion Lionel Messi was still too good for them, as they lost 3-0 in the Nou Camp in what was the harshest of Champions League lessons.

Willian says Chelsea must play the “perfect” game to advance to the Champions League quarter-finals at the expense of Barcelona this evening.

The fortunes of Manchester City and Chelsea have followed vaguely parallel paths for much of the last five decades, but on the evidence of this match at the Etihad, the two clubs are heading in different directions right now.

Man United 2 - Chelsea 1: Antonio Conte may have seen his long-running feud with Jose Mourinho come to an end at Old Trafford but it may also have been the afternoon when the Chelsea manager saw his team’s hopes of a Champions League place similarly disappear into thin air.

Romelu Lukaku inspired Manchester United to a comeback win against former club Chelsea as Jose Mourinho got the better of Antonio Conte.

This was an intriguing clash on so many levels, and not just because Chelsea and Barcelona have broken each other’s hearts over the past decade or so.

Chelsea 1 Barcelona 1 

Lionel Messi broke his goal duck against Chelsea to deny Antonio Conte's side a crucial lead over Barcelona in their Champions League showdown.

Michy Batshuayi scored twice as Chelsea marched on in the FA Cup with a 3-0 win over Newcastle at Stamford Bridge.

Arsenal 2 Chelsea (Arsenal win 2-1 on aggregate)

Chelsea 0 Arsenal 0: The frustration felt by Arsene Wenger as his Arsenal side struggled in the face of intense Chelsea pressure was intensified by the manager being forced to watch from the unfamiliar surroundings of the press box.

Two goals in the final five minutes gave Carlos Carvalhal a dramatic debut victory as Swansea boss.

Daniel Storey reviews the football year.

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has been charged with misconduct by the Football Association following his dismissal against Swansea on Wednesday.

Wayne Rooney completed his first Everton hat-trick with a stunning effort from inside his own half as manager-in-waiting Sam Allardyce watched a 4-0 Premier League victory over West Ham from the stands at Goodison Park.

In a statement, UEFA announced its control, ethics and disciplinary body "has decided to close the disciplinary proceedings".

Roma 3 Chelsea 0: Chelsea crumbled last night as Roma moved to the top of Champions League Group C with a 3-0 victory at Stadio Olimpico last night.

Chelsea crumbled as Roma moved to the top of Champions League Group C with a 3-0 victory at Stadio Olimpico on Tuesday night.

Everton's caretaker manager David Unsworth is scheduled to meet the club's owner Farhad Moshiri having overseen an improved performance at Chelsea in his first match in charge.

Chelsea 2 Everton 1: David Unsworth’s first match as Everton’s caretaker manager ended in a 2-1 defeat at Chelsea in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.

Northern Ireland celebrated a World Cup qualifying play-off place despite a 1-0 defeat in Norway as Scotland's bid ended in heartache.

Manchester City topped the Premier League summer spending chart - despite their bid for Alexis Sanchez falling through.

Cesc Fabregas and Alvaro Morata were on target as Chelsea showed their Premier League pedigree by swatting aside Everton.

Tottenham’s Harry Kane is relishing the prospect of facing Real Madrid following a Champions League draw which also saw Chelsea handed a showdown with Diego Costa’s former club Atletico Madrid.

Premier League spending in the current transfer window is already at an all-time record level, with a week remaining.

Tottenham and Chelsea play at Wembley Stadium on Sunday in the Premier League.

The opening weekend of the season may be too early to talk of a crisis, but the mood music around Stamford Bridge is not good and Saturday’s humiliation by Burnley was not out of character from a club that has appeared dysfunctional since before becoming champions last May.

Chelsea and Diego Costa’s dispute is no nearer to a resolution as the Blues begin their Premier League title defence in an apparent legal wrangle with the exiled striker.

The Premier League is ready to kick off into a 25th campaign on the back of yet another big summer spending spree.

Arsene Wenger sympathises with Chelsea counterpart Antonio Conte over the size of his squad — but reckons the Blues have made their own problems by loaning out so many players.

Chelsea skipper Gary Cahill is in no doubt the club have added quality to the squad over the summer - but it is the quantity which is a worry for the England defender.

Antonio Conte expects this season to be his most difficult in management.

Alvaro Morata has set his sights on winning further silverware at Chelsea after completing his move from Real Madrid.