A West London derby under the lights at Craven Cottage on a Monday night certainly wasn’t going to be easy and so it proved as Chelsea battled hard to win their first away game of the season courtesy of goals from Mudryk and Armando Broja in a 0-2 win.
Here are 3 takeaways from the game :
Robert Sanchez proves his worth once again :
Signed after a disastrous season that saw him relegated to being Brighton’s third-choice goalkeeper, Robert Sanchez continues to catch the eye, game after game.
Despite his game being far from perfect, Sanchez’s new found habit of making crucial saves in games is slowly but surely etching his name permanently onto the lips of Chelsea fans as his praise is sung after each match-day.
Boasting having the highest clean-sheets this season so far (3), and being named the best goalkeeper in the month of September by stats sites, Sanchez’s renaissance is worthy of praise as many didn’t expect him to turn out this good and if he were to keep up performances like this, more accolades are expected to come his way.
Creativity issues solved yet? :
Palmer, Recce James, Carney, Enzo, Mudryk and yet to feature Christopher Nkunku. All these names mentioned are creative outlets Chelsea possess and with the team creating quality chances again without Recce James, the question begging for an answer is; Are the creativity problems now solved?
“Yes” seems to be the answer when you consider a certain young Englishman brought in for about 45 million pounds from Manchester City is beginning to show the team what it’s missed in recent games.
Pausa, feints, fakes, final pass and ball retention are some of the most integral traits you must possess to be successful as an attacker/creative midfielder and Cole Palmer displays all.
Getting his first start in the premier league for Chelsea as a RW tonight, Cole Palmer’s work-rate and intelligent pressing (often covering two players) were all noticeable in a total performance at the Craven Cottage.
Recovering the ball 8 times, creating one big chance and winning the most fouls with 3 saw Palmer record a good night’s job done right before Mauricio Pochettino on the sideline.
Gallagher showing captain stuffs :
Deputising as captain in place of team captains (Reece James and Ben Chilwell), Conor Gallagher continues to grow in leaps and bounds.
Playing in a much suited role as the CAM, and mostly far away from build-up, Gallagher’s doggedness out of possession and “new found technique” in possession has seen the Cobham graduate reward coach Mauricio Pochettino’s trust placed in him.
Winning the most duels (8/14), and making 5/5 successful tackles point to how hard Gallagher worked for the team in a brilliant team performance at the Cottage tonight.
Man of the Match; Caicedo 8/10.
Next up for Chelsea is a tie against newcomers Burnley.
