By Ross Heppenstall
Oli McBurnie rescued a late point for rock-bottom Sheffield United as Chelsea wobbled once again in a dramatic finish.
The 27-year-old Blades striker equalised in the third minute of added time to put a major dent in the European hopes of Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
It was no more than Chris Wilder’s battlers deserved after having their aristocratic visitors on the ropes at times.
United might be going down, but they are going down fighting.
This was a sweet ending for the hosts and certainly for McBurnie, who recently revealed his younger brother Xander, 26, is fighting cancer.
McBurnie scored for the second home game running but Chelsea’s season continues to flit from the sublime to the ridiculous.
They were on course for victory after Noni Madueke put them 2-1 up in the 66th minute.
Jayden Bogle cancelled out Thiago Silva’s early opener before the break and McBurnie’s late leveller lifted the roof off Bramall Lane.
Still bubbling from their dramatic 4-3 home win over Manchester United men three days earlier, Pochettino’s men arrived in confident mood.
Cole Palmer, who underlined his burgeoning talent with a hat-trick against Erik ten Hag’s side, was soon pulling the strings again.
And Chelsea led in the 11th minute when Conor Gallagher’s right-wing corner fell to Silva.
Will Chelsea be playing European football next season?
Completely unmarked, the 39-year-old Brazilian fired home right-footed, almost apologetically, past Ivo Grbic from 12 yards out.
It was shocking defending from a Blades side who have now conceded the most home goals in Premier League history.
Chelsea purred ominously thereafter but Wilder’s men refused to buckle and began to ask some questions of their own.
Suddenly they began to force their visitors back and midway through the first half, United went close.
A poor backpass from Silva was seized upon by McBurnie and he cleverly found strike partner Ben Brereton Diaz, whose low shot was blocked.
It was a warning sign for Pochettino’s men and, after Palmer had a shot superbly thwarted by United defender Jack Robinson at the other end, the hosts upped the tempo in devastating fashion.
Gus Hamer hit a right-foot shot from 25 yards which forced Dorde Petrovic into action, but moments later United’s equaliser arrived.
It came in the 32nd minute when Hamer swapped passes with McBurnie and then played the ball through Moses Caicedo’s legs with a delightful ball to Bogle inside the right channel.
The wing-back strode on to Hamer’s pass, which completely took Marc Cucurella out of the game, and lashed a fierce right-foot shot past Petrovic.
That poured confidence into United and they might have had a second after the break as several half-chances came and went.
Hamer sent a superb first-time shot just wide of Petrovic’s post before Chelsea stuck a dagger through the heart of the Blades.
Collecting Palmer’s neat pass inside the right channel, Madueke cut inside past Auston Trusty all too easily and rifled home a fierce left-foot shot past Grbic.
That looked set to be the winner but United refused to lie down.
Petrovic was forced into a fine save to deny Blades captain Robinson a headed equaliser late on before McBurnie finally levelled.
Latching onto a header from substitute Cameron Archer, McBurnie kept his composure to beat the offside trap and drill a right-foot shot past Petrovic.
The goal was confirmed after a VAR check, sparking wild celebrations.
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