Following a tense and scrappy start to the game, it was Chelsea who pulled clear initially, looking for revenge after our defeat at Elland Road in December.

Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro combined brilliantly for the latter to give us the lead with a fine chip, before a blatant push on the Brazilian allowed Palmer to put us two ahead, with another penalty to add to the two scored on his way to a hat-trick in our last match.

However, Leeds pulled one back with a penalty of their own and suddenly had levelled after a moment of chaos in the Chelsea box gifted them a chance.

We fought to the end to restore out advantage, but Joao Pedro hit the woodwork and Palmer was left in disbelief after missing the target from our best chance in added time, leaving the Blues to make do with a draw after dropping Premier League points for the first time under Liam Rosenior.

The selection

Josh Acheampong came in to take one of the centre-back spots, alongside Trevoh Chalobah. Wesley Fofana made way, while full-backs Malo Gusto and Marc Cucurella retained their places in the team. Moises Caicedo and Andrey Santos linked up in midfield again, with Enzo Fernandez captaining the side ahead of them. Estevao Willian was the second introduction to the line-up, replacing Pedro Neto on the flank, with Cole Palmer on the opposite side and Joao Pedro leading Chelsea's attack.

Scrappy start

The game kicked off inside the kind of atmosphere you only get when two old rivals go head-to-head, with both sets of supporters making plenty of noise inside Stamford Bridge as the game got under way.

The visitors made a strong start to the game, though, just as they had in the reverse fixture at Elland Road. This time they were overloading in wide positions looking to exploit the flanks, appearing to field three right wing-backs during periods at the start of the game.

But it was on the left side they were causing us the most problems, as shown by yellow cards for both Gusto and Acheampong in the first 15 minutes. Although the Whites had plenty of the ball, the game was fairly even by most measurements, and it was the Blues who came closest to carving out a chance, through a couple of low crosses by Cucurella which were scrambled clear by an unsettled Leeds defence.

A series of fouls awarded against both teams meant the game was still yet to find any real rhythm after 20 minutes, as Gabriel Gudmundsson and Sebastiaan Bornauw joined the two Blues in the referee’s book.

Cole and Joao provide the cutting edge

The momentum had started to swing towards the Blues midway through the first half. The game had been lacking a decisive moment in the attacking third from either team, and suddenly it was Chelsea who produced that incisive move for the breakthrough.

Leeds were sloppy in trying to move the ball forward, allowing Acheampong to pick up the loose pass. A quick interchange between the defender, Fernandez and Santos released Palmer to carry the ball forward and slip in Joao Pedro. The Brazilian finished with aplomb, lifting a deft chip over the onrushing Karl Darlow.

How many times have we seen that Palmer and Joao Pedro combination produce a vital moment of quality, and that was certainly the case here, adding spark to a game which had threatened to drift towards the half-time break.

As it was, the goal took a lot of the wind out of Leeds’ sails, allowing us to create another very similar opening almost instantly. This time Palmer opted to go himself, but his low shot from the edge of the box was too close to the keeper.

Regardless, Chelsea remained in the ascendency, with Palmer and Joao Pedro showing further signs that their link-up play was more than Leeds could handle. It failed to produce any further goals before half-time, despite our No20 dragging an extravagant volley just wide, while at the other end Sanchez went in for the break without being tested by the visitors.

Settling into our rhythm

It felt like Leeds would need to fly out of the blocks and take the initiative from the restart if they were to find a way back into the game, but there was no sign of that initially. Instead, Chelsea looked as comfortable as we had since taking the lead, with Estevao drilling narrowly wide of the near post as he looked to extend our advantage.

The Brazilian was starting to enjoy himself, as shown by a cheeky nutmeg on Gudmundsson, before Palmer had an effort charged down. With the game beginning to slip away from them, Leeds head coach Daniel Farke responded with an attacking substitution to bring on Noah Okafor, but before the newcomer could touch the ball, Chelsea were two ahead.

The opportunity was provided by a moment of madness from Leeds defender Jaka Bijol, who senselessly shoved Joao Pedro to the ground in the box as the striker chased a hopeful ball into the channel. With no-one else near them, it was so obvious every person in the stadium saw the clear foul, well before the referee blew for the inevitable penalty.

From there there was little doubt in the outcome of the kick. Just as he had done twice at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, Cole Palmer stepped up to the spot and dispatched his penalty ruthlessly into the bottom corner.

Game turned on its head

Just as it looked like Chelsea would be free and clear, with the hope visibly draining from the Leeds players after our second goal, the away team were given a route back into the game via a penalty of their own. As Jayden Bogle charged into the box, Caicedo attempted to make the challenge from an awkward angle and stepped on his foot, prompting the referee to blow his whistle again. Like Palmer before him, Lukas Nmecha gave the goalkeeper no chance from 18 yards.

That returned some of the confidence Leeds had previously lost, as they made their first sustained push forward of the second half. In an unlikely turnaround, that gave the Whites a chaotic equaliser. There was a big slice of luck as an awkwardly bouncing ball evaded everyone on its way towards the Chelsea box. Another fortunate ricochet, a moment of hesitation, and suddenly the ball had squirmed loose for Okafor to tap into an empty net.

That set things up for a tense finale, with the scores now level again at 2-2 and the noise back to its loudest inside the stadium. Rosenior made changes to try and retake the initiative, with Wesley Fofana, Pedro Neto and Liam Delap all coming on.

We gradually managed to retake control of the game, but a third goal proved beyond us as Leeds increasingly settled for seeing out the point in the closing stages. Joao Pedro was a whisker away from proving decisive in stoppage time, when he headed Jorrel Hato's curling cross against the crossbar, then Palmer couldn't keep his shot down from a cross driven across goal, and we had to settle for a draw at the end of a fiercely contested match.

What is next

Attention quickly turns away from the Premier League with all eyes on Chelsea's FA Cup campaign on Friday evening. We travel away to take on Hull City in the fourth round, with kick-off at 7.45pm on 13 February.

The teams

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Gusto, Acheampong (Fofana 78), Chalobah, Cucurella (Hato h-t); Caicedo, Santos (Delap 78); Palmer, Fernandez (c), Estevao (Neto 64); Joao Pedro
Unused subs: Sharman-Lowe, Badiashile, Sarr, Garnacho, Guiu
Scorers: Joao Pedro 24, Palmer pen 58
Booked: Gusto 8, Acheampong 14, Palmer 67, Caicedo f-t

Leeds United (3-4-2-1): Darlow; Justin, Bijol, Rodon; Bornauw (Okafor 55), Ampadu (c), Gruev, Gudmundsson; Bogle, Aaronson (Longstaff 90+5); Nmecha (James 82)
Unused subs: Perri, Byram, Tanaka, Buonanotte, Gnonto, Piroe
Scorer: Nmecha pen 67, Okafor 73
Booked: Gudmundsson 19, Bornauw 22, Justin 45, Longstaff 90+6

Referee: Robert Jones