Eden Hazard missed a late penalty as Chelsea were held to a shock 1-1 draw by Slovenian side Maribor in Group G of the Champions League this evening.
The hosts took the lead five minutes after the break when Agim Ibraimi curled a fine effort into the far corner, while Luka Zahovic missed a gilt-edged chance to double the advantage shortly after.
Chelsea's pressure finally told when Nemanja Matic converted from close range in the 73rd minute, but Hazard missed the chance to give his side all three points as he saw his spot kick saved by Jasmin Handanovic.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at a thoroughly entertaining 90 minutes of European action.
Match statistics
MARIBOR
Shots: 11
On target: 3
Possession: 36%
Corners: 2
Fouls: 11
CHELSEA
Shots: 24
On target: 10
Possession: 64%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 7
Was the result fair?
It really is hard to begrudge Maribor their point tonight. Having been humiliated at Stamford Bridge in the reverse fixture a fortnight ago, they put in such a spirited and improved performance that they matched Chelsea for long periods of the game. Their philosophy and refusal to park the bus - even with a 1-0 lead - was great to see and made it an enthralling spectacle for the neutral.
Chelsea will point to them leading every stat count as proof that they deserved to win this match, and it is hard to argue from that perspective. They certainly had the chances to take all three points in the closing stages, and it took an inspired performance from Handanovic to stop them from doing so.
However, Maribor had chances of their own too. Quite how Zahovic missed a gaping goal from a few yards out, not even he will know, and that would have made it 2-0 and possibly game over for the visitors. On the balance of things, Chelsea probably did deserve the victory tonight, but it was by no means a smash and grab job by the hosts, and nothing should be taken away from what they achieved.
Maribor's performance
Was this really the same team that was hammered so convincingly by Chelsea last month? It certainly didn't seem like it. While Chelsea were undoubtedly not at their best tonight, Maribor's own performance was full of intensity, desire and perhaps a dose of refusal to be humiliated once again. They were better in every area than they were a fortnight ago, and the result is just reward for that.
They played some lovely football at times and were more than a match for Chelsea throughout the first half. The visitors looked like they wanted to come out firing when Jose Mourinho brought on two half-time substitutions, but rather than retreating into their shell, Maribor pushed on even more and opened the scoring with a fabulous strike from Ibraimi. Indeed, had Zahovic converted his chance then they could well be celebrating a win right now.
Ante Simundza would have been expecting a reaction from Chelsea, and he certainly got one. However, they stood up to it very well and, while they were forced to rely on some individual heroics from Handanovic on a couple of occasions, everyone pulled their weight when they were under the cosh. Even then, though, they refused to sit back and went in search of another goal themselves, exploiting the wide areas that had been left open by Chelsea's decision to switch to three at the back.
Having taken the lead, there may be the slightest twinge of disappointment that they were unable to hang on for all three points. However, a draw against Chelsea is still one of the greatest results in the club's history, and they can be rightly proud of their efforts this evening.
Chelsea's performance
Throughout the week, Mourinho had been warning his side that Maribor were a "dangerous" team. Whether that was a case of mind games to avoid complacency creeping in or a genuine assessment of his opponents, he was proven to be right. Chelsea could not get control of this match as they did at Stamford Bridge a fortnight ago, and anyone expecting a comfortable victory soon saw that it wouldn't be the case after all.
The main problem with Chelsea tonight was their lack of speed in the build-up. All too often it was a little laboured, and there was rarely the free-flowing football that made them such a force earlier in the season. It was only towards the end when they needed a goal that they began to show some urgency, with Hazard leading the way and grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck.
It was another very tough game for Chelsea who, despite now being 16 matches unbeaten this season, are going through a bit of a dip in form performance-wise. They face a tricky test against Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, and Mourinho would have been hoping for the chance to rest a couple of players in this one. He didn't get that, however, and they will now travel to Merseyside on the back of a disappointing result and performance.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Jasmin Handanovic: Had the penalty gone in, Hazard could lay claim to this award for a fine individual performance. However, it was Handanovic who ultimately saved the day for Maribor with a string of superb stops to keep Chelsea at bay. There was nothing he could do about the goal but, in addition to the penalty stop, he thwarted Hazard in a one-on-one situation and also made a fine fingertip save to deny Diego Costa. A quite brilliant performance from the Slovenian shot-stopper.
Biggest gaffe
Hazard deserves a mention for the penalty and his miss in the one-on-one situation, but that sitter was a tough chance in comparison to Zahovic's just five minutes after Maribor had taken the lead. Mitja Viler played a fine ball across the face of goal for the youngster to tap in from close range but, with the goal gaping, he somehow put his effort over the bar. He is the top scorer in the Slovenian league this season, so clearly knows where the goal is, but that was a truly shocking miss, and it may have cost his side all three points.
Referee performance
Daniele Orsato made a number of questionable calls this evening, including one where he refused to give Oscar a penalty despite the Brazilian being tripped inside the area. There were also a couple of harsh yellow cards handed out, while Chelsea could point to a goal being wrongly disallowed for offside as well.
What next?
Maribor: Next up for Maribor is a match against Krka in the league on Sunday before facing the same opponents in the cup on Wednesday.
Chelsea: Chelsea, meanwhile, will get another test of their title credentials when they take on Liverpool at Anfield.
Barney Corkhill
