"We need him", "That error from Palmer could’ve been easily avoided" - Chelsea fans urge club to recall player out on loan after Crystal Palace draw

Chelsea fans have requested that the club should bring back loanee player Andrey Santos following their 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday, January 4. Santos, who joined the Blues from Brazilian side Vasco da Gama in January 2023, is currently on a season-long loan at Ligue 1 side Strasbourg.

Chelsea has endured a poor run of form in the past few weeks, picking up just one point in their last three league matches before their match against Palace. Hoping to turn around an unwanted streak, Enzo Maresca’s men started the game by dictating proceedings.

It took just 14 minutes for Chelsea to break the deadlock. Jadon Sancho produced a wonderful dummy before teeing up Cole Palmer, who stroked the ball past Crystal Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson.

However, the Blues couldn’t add a second goal to their early lead before the break despite their dominance. Oliver Glasner’s men, however, came out with guns blazing in the second half, but their equalizer came in the 82nd minute.

The hosts broke away after Palmer was dispossessed, and Jean-Philippe capped it off with a low finish. Chelsea huffed and puffed for a go-ahead goal in the dying embers of the game. However, it never came and spoils were eventually shared between both sides.

After the match, the Blues faithful felt their midfield was ineffective and opined that loanee Santos could have made a difference in the middle of the park. Here are some of their reactions on X (formerly Twitter):

A fan wrote:

''For the 200th time. Recall Andrey Santos. Imagine if we could’ve brought Andrey on today, or in any of our last 4 games. Caicedo and Enzo are getting run into the ground & as much as I love Lavia, we can’t trust his fitness. Too good to be on loan AND we need him.''

Another tweeted:

''Absolutely, this team needs either Romeo lavia or Andrey Santos to be starting. That error from palmer could've been easily avoided.''

''I’ve made my mind up. Bring Andrey Santos back.'' another wrote

''Fuck Jackson get a proper striker. Bring back Andrey Santos'' another demanded

''I would love to let Andrey Santos see out his loan but realistically we need him now. We’re in a slump and our midfield is tired. If we don’t get fresh legs in there we will be ran through by every team.'' a fan opined

''Recall Andrey Santos in january man our midfield is DEAD'' another wrote

''Chelsea should resign Andrey Santos. Caicedo as the only defensive mid is causing problem. He is obviously tired playing all the games.'' another suggested

''If we don't bring back Andrey Santos then we are really not serious because what happens if something happens to Enzo or Caicedo.'' another chimed in

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Enzo Maresca said Chelsea 'did enough to win' after 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca believes a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace is an unfair result for his side. He said that they created numerous chances and deserved to win the game. The Blues started the game strongly but couldn’t convert their chances and were punished by Palace eight minutes from time.

After the match, Maresca said (via Football London):

"We probably did enough to win the game today. Between the first-half and the second-half, we probably created enough chances to win the game.

"But in football, you need to be clinical otherwise the game is always open, especially in this stadium; any transition, any corner boosts the energy for them. Unfortunately at the end, we concede but overall, we did enough today to win the game."

Chelsea remain rooted in the fourth position on the league table with 36 points after 20 games.