Frank Lampard’s Chelsea pass true test of how far they have come since £200m spending spree
Frank Lampard’s Chelsea pass true test of how far they have come since £200m spending spree
Frank Lampard’s Blues struggled against Sheffield United last season but demonstrated the progress they have made as Chelsea brushed aside the Blades at Stamford Bridge
“They were better than us physically, better than us mentally, better with the ball,” a simmering Lampard said in Yorkshire. “They were also stronger than us. With no crowd you can hear every voice. All I could hear were Sheffield United voices.”
It was the final point that stuck out. Lampard, like most head coaches, can accept defeat much easier if the team has shown some personality. They were meek, shrinking violets on that Saturday evening.
Fast-forward 17 weeks and it was a different story here. Last season this was a game Chelsea too often failed to win but they showed plenty of character to overcome a tough start for a win that sees them enter the international break with plenty of momentum.
It helps that there were eight different faces in the starting line-up at Stamford Bridge compared to Bramall Lane, although this is still a team that is not going to win a shouting contest despite an abundance of technical ability. Lampard has spoken a lot about building relationships on the pitch of late and there are undoubtedly kinks that must be ironed out. But they are getting there.
Much of the improvement in terms of enhancing the collective’s character has come from the presence of Thiago Silva, his mere existence enough to bring calm to a skittish back line. The 36-year-old is taking intensive English lessons with a focus on phrases needed for football but the leadership quality was clear well before this game.
Plenty of praise can be heaped on Edouard Mendy too, a far more commanding and instructive voice than Kepa Arrizabalaga, but as Sheffield United poured forward in the early stages it was easy to remember that this is still a team undergoing growth.
From the opening minute it was clear that Sheffield United’s voices still carried louder. Not solely on the pitch either; the encouragement from the visiting dugout produced significantly more decibels than the home bench.
The visitors deserved their early lead, David McGoldrick again the source of misery for Chelsea as he finished from a corner, but Lampard has far more technical quality at his disposal compared to the summer, summed up by Ziyech’s magic wand.
Chelsea’s potency from the flanks with Reece James playing behind Ziyech on the right and Ben Chilwell producing on the left with, in recent games, Timo Werner ahead of him, was a topic of conversation before Saturday’s match against Sheffield United.
‘At the moment we are getting praise for the sides of the pitch but as we move forward we can get better at it in terms of our execution and finishing in the box as well, but it is something I am happy with and we want to keep working on it,’ Frank Lampard said on Friday.
That the boss then labelled the 4-1 victory against the Blades, the first Chelsea win against Chris Wilder’s side under his management, as the best performance of the season indicates the team have indeed very quickly got better at the wide play, and the statistics from the game back that up.
Though quite rightly the football on the right, for which Ziyech was overwhelmingly voted man of the match, received much attention, the attacking importance of the left side cannot be ignored.
THIAGO SILVA AND ZOUMA ROCK SOLID
THIAGO SILVA AND ZOUMA FORM ROCK-SOLID FOUNDATIONS
Defensive duo continue to deliver
This was the fifth occasion that Thiago Silva and Zouma have lined up together at the back from the start and the duo have yet to concede a goal on their watch. Last night’s shutout also helped us to a fifth consecutive clean sheet in all competitions for the first time since the autumn of 2010.
Thiago Silva’s classy, calming influence has been key to our defensive improvement and the Brazilian was unruffled throughout. He completed 93 per cent of his 62 passes while winning all his aerial duels and tackles, despite only playing three-quarters of the contest.
Frank Lampard spoke this week about managing the 36-year-old’s workload throughout the campaign and it is clear that, if kept fit and fresh, the focused defender will be instrumental for the Blues as 2020/21 picks up pace.
Alongside him, Zouma was similarly impressive against his countrymen. No player on the pitch had more touches (99) or attempted more passes (93), while his defensive duties were carried out with minimal fuss. Edouard Mendy behind them made it just one Erik Lamela goal conceded in his first 630 minutes in blue.
Havertz Covid-19 Positive
It’s just been confirmed by Frank Lampard that Kai Havertz has coronavirus, and the football world reacted as you’d expect.
There were fans of other clubs laughing at Chelsea, and Chelsea fans despairing at the news. The positive test means the midfielder will now be out for 14 days – meaning that this weekend’s game against Sheffield United is out of the question as well as tonight’s fixture with Rennes.
As one fan on social media put it, it’s “not the news you want to hear as a Chelsea fan.”
On the other hand, it could be a lot worse. Havertz was in need of a rest anyway, and at least half of this enforced break will come in the international period.
Hopefully after all that he will be really refreshed and ready to play serious minutes through the winter. That’s the spin we’re putting on things, at least.
Timo Werner new penalties Taker at Chelsea as he scores 2 pass Rennes
Timo Werner scored twice from the penalty spot to help Chelsea beat Rennes 3-0 in the Champions League on Wednesday evening at Stamford Bridge, with Tammy Abraham netting the Blues’ other goal .
Chelsea 3-0 Rennes: Timo Werner and Tammy Abraham on target in convincing Champions League win.
Taking over the spot-kick duties from Jorginho, who has missed two this season, the German flashed home both efforts from 12 yards. Dalbert was the culprit for Rennes on both occasions, tripping Werner for the first and then adjudged to have handled when he knew little about it for the second, which drew a second yellow card for the full-back after a VAR review.
Chelsea played smartly with the extra man, using the full width of the pitch, and Tammy Abraham grabbed the third when finishing from a fine Reece James cross as Chelsea took control of Group E.
The result means another clean sheet for Edouard Mendy, who was faultless but largely untested against his former club. It’s now 540 minutes since he conceded across all competitions as Chelsea have kept five straight clean sheets for the first time since 2010.
Krasnodar, Burnley and now the French side have been dispatched by an aggregate score of 10-0 in the Blues’ last three games as Frank Lampard seems to be finding the right balance with his talented squad.
Happy birthday, Mario Melchiot!
We breed them great, Happy Birthday Mario Melchiot. Have a defender’s birthday .
Chelsea’s new signings made them look like genuine title contenders
Chelsea’s new signings made them look like genuine title contenders as Frank Lampard’s six new stars all shone from the start in their 3-0 victory at Burnley.
Perhaps Boris Johnson pushed back his Saturday press conference from its original 4pm start because he’d paid the £14.95 to watch Chelsea. A wise decision from the PM if so.
For anyone who tuned in saw a performance of genuine Premier League title contenders on a cold October afternoon in Burnley, with the pieces falling into place for Frank Lampard.
All six of Lampard’s summer signings — Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell, Thiago Silva and Edouard Mendy — started and excelled at Turf Moor.
Frank Lampard’s new signings – including Hakim Ziyech – impressed as they won 3-0 at Burnley
- ‘Maybe we were patting each other on the back’: Harry…‘I’m surprised VAR hasn’t given a pen’: Chelsea’s Edouard…‘I don’t see ANY leaders out there… a long, long way back…‘Home and away form is out the window with no fans’: Ole…
The midfield balance was there, with N’Golo Kante flanked by Havertz and Mason Mount. It was reminiscent of Fernandinho as the holder behind David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne for Manchester City.
There was real fluidity to Lampard’s 4-3-3 set-up. The touch maps of his players show they weren’t restricted to a single area of the pitch, but rather encouraged to roam.
‘They’re giving me nice feelings and ideas as we move forward,’ said Lampard, whose only complaint was that he lost Christian Pulisic to a hamstring injury in the warm-up.
Edouard Mendy could face his former club Rennes on Wednesday
The Senegalese international joined Chelsea from Rennes at the end of September and will be hopeful of starting against his former club when we meet at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League on Wednesday evening, having played a big part in the French club qualifying for the competition for the first time in their history last season.
Mendy has enjoyed an excellent start to life in west London, conceding just once in his six appearances for the Blues so far. But how closely have you been paying attention to our new goalkeeper during those matches and how much do you know about his career before Chelsea? You can find out in our quiz on the 28-year-old below. Good luck!
Petr Cech was struck by talent of Edouard Mendy
‘I’ve watched 30 goalkeepers in the last 18 months and he was the one who came to mind’: Petr Cech was struck by talent of Edouard Mendy and reveals role in spotting Chelsea No 1, who followed his path from Rennes to Stamford Bridge
Petr Cech has revealed that he was hugely impressed by the talent of Edouard Mendy when Chelsea were considering a move for the goalkeeper.
After enduring much frustration in the goalkeeping department as Kepa Arrizabalaga frequently made mistakes, Mendy has been a considerably calmer presence between the sticks since making the switch from Rennes in September.
Cech, Chelsea’s technical advisor, joined the Blues from Rennes himself in 2004, and disclosed that he played a part in the signing of Mendy.
‘We have Kepa and Willy Caballero, who every time we needed him was ready to step in and we decided with Kepa going through a difficult moment where things were not happening for him on the pitch, we decided to add to our goalkeeping group and we agreed to bring in Edouard. So far, he’s been doing great.
‘In my first eight games [at Chelsea], we had seven clean sheets. If he [Mendy] gets that and makes it better, I will be happy, because the team will do well and we will be winning, and this is ultimately what we want.’
Mendy has received much praise for his performances for Chelsea so far and will certainly benefit from the advice of a club legend in Cech.
Cech has been registered as a non-contact player in the Premier League, but it is anticipated that Mendy will play the majority of games for Frank Lampard’s side.
There was a special occasion for Mendy on Wednesday night as he was in action against his former side Rennes in the Champions League.
Speaking before the game, Lampard revealed that Mendy gave him ‘a lot of detail’ about the French side.
