Leeds United climbed out of the relegation zone with a morale-boosting 3-1 victory over Chelsea at Elland Road.
Jaka Bijol and Ao Tanaka both scored their first Premier League goals, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin was also on target as Leeds ended a four-match losing streak and eased the pressure on manager Daniel Farke.
Bijol’s thumping header broke the deadlock after only six minutes, before Tanaka lashed home from the edge of the box just before half-time.
Pedro Neto came off the bench to halve the deficit five minutes into the second half, but Calvert-Lewin pounced on a defensive error to seal victory and condemn Chelsea to a rare away defeat.
Enzo Maresca's side slip to fourth place, falling nine points behind leaders Arsenal, while the hosts leapfrogged West Ham United to reach 17th.
How the match unfolded
Leeds were quick out of the blocks and were rewarded for their positive start when Bijol powered home a header from Anton Stach's corner.
Chelsea grew into the contest but struggled to generate an attacking threat during the first half and fell 2-0 behind in the 42nd minute. Jayden Bogle pounced on sloppy play from the Blues to feed Tanaka, who flashed a 20-yard strike beyond a helpless Robert Sanchez.
Tanaka's goal against Chelsea
Ao Tanaka's 🚀 to put @LUFC two in front against Chelsea! pic.twitter.com/C9jEPXD0lj
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 4, 2025
Maresca made a double change at half-time, and one of those substitutes pulled a goal back within five minutes of the restart, with Neto turning in Jamie Gittens' cross at the far post.
Lukas Nmecha's thumping finish soon after was ruled out for offside, but Leeds did restore their two-goal advantage and put the result beyond doubt 18 minutes from time.
Tosin Adarabioyo dallied on the ball inside his own penalty area, and Noah Okafor's pressure on Sanchez enabled Calvert-Lewin to tap in and seal three crucial points.
Leeds leap out of the relegation zone
With West Ham not playing until Thursday, Leeds capitalised to lift themselves out of the bottom three.
Reportedly under pressure following a run of four straight defeats, Farke switched from a back four for the first time in a Premier League game since his Norwich City side were beaten 7-0 by Chelsea just over four years ago.
This was to prove a happier occasion, and one of his back three broke the deadlock as Bijol’s powerful header rewarded a purposeful start.
Another of those defenders almost doubled the lead in Struijk, before the second goal did arrive in superb fashion from Tanaka, who became the first Asian player to score for Leeds in the Premier League.
A slight lapse in concentration allowed Chelsea back into the contest, but the hosts continued to be positive and their pressure paid dividends with Calvert-Lewin’s first home goal for the club proving decisive.
The big games keep coming for Farke's side, with reigning champions Liverpool being the next visitors to Elland Road on Saturday, but they will be buoyed by a much-needed three points.
Sloppy Chelsea feel the Blues
Chelsea's unbeaten run of seven matches in all competitions came to an end following an underwhelming display at Elland Road.
The Blues took a while to settle and found themselves behind inside six minutes, and they were slow to react again when Struijk nodded wide.
Sloppiness proved a recurrent theme for the visitors. Enzo Fernandez was caught in possession on the edge of his own box and was punished by Tanaka's superb strike.
While Nmecha's volley called Sanchez into action, Chelsea were invigorated after the break, with substitute Neto quickly making his mark to drag them back into the contest.
Cole Palmer also came off the bench, making his first appearance since 20 September, and he steered a shot narrowly wide within eight minutes of his return to action.
However, that positive spell counted for nothing as Chelsea caused their own problems once more. Tosin's hesitation and Sanchez's uncertainty when facing Okafor's sliding challenge left Calvert-Lewin with an empty net to slot the loose ball into.
Chelsea will welcome the chance to put this performance behind them when they travel to out-of-form AFC Bournemouth on Saturday.
Club reports
What the managers said
Daniel Farke: “It’s for nights like this that we were so desperate to bring the club back to the top level. Elland Road tonight was back to its best. Also a great shift from my lads, a great performance against one of the best sides in the world. They won the [FIFA Club] World Cup in the summer and they’re one of the contenders for the Premier League. To win this game in this manner. it was a well-deserved win and compliments to the lads.”
Enzo Maresca: “Absolutely a very poor night. They deserved to win the game. They were better than us in all the aspects. Try to analyse and learn from this game and focus on the next one. It’s not about possession. I thought they were better than us in all the aspects, deserved to win, congratulations to them, now we need to analyse and think what we have done bad and try to improve.”
Next PL fixtures
Key facts
Leeds' 3-1 win over Chelsea came with just 28.6 per cent possession; their lowest share in a league victory since December 2016 when they beat Reading in the Championship (23.2 per cent).
Chelsea have only won 19 per cent of their Premier League games away to Leeds (3/16). Among sides they’ve faced 10+ times away from home in the competition, they only have a worse win percentage against Manchester United (18 per cent).
Leeds' Expected Goals (xG) total of 2.82 was the second-highest by a team against Chelsea in the Premier League since Maresca took charge, behind only 2.90 by Tottenham in December 2024.
Neto has scored five goals in 14 appearances for Chelsea in the Premier League this season, already equalling his best total in a single campaign (five in 31 games for Wolves in 2020/21). He is now the top scorer for the Blues in the competition this season (five).