Ben Chilwell-inspired Chelsea thump Crystal Palace (Photo by KIRSTY WIGGLESWORTH/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Three questions and answers from Chelsea’s 4-0 rout of Crystal Palace
Chelsea ran riot in the second half!
Chelsea returned to winning ways in emphatic fashion after dismantling Crystal Palace 4-0 in London derby at the Stamford Bridge.
Debutant Ben Chilwell, Kurt Zouma, and Jorginho, who twice scored from the spot, took apart the Eagles in the second-half to comfortably clinch all three points.
This was Chelsea’s second win from four games, moving them up to fourth in the table, whereas Roy Hodgson’s side, condemned to second loss in a row, drop to ninth.
Hereare the three questions and answers from the match:
Three questions from the match
1) Why do Chelsea struggle in the opening half?
In four league games so far, Chelsea have struck 10 times, nine of which have come after the break, including all four of this game. This shows they click into gear in the second-half, but a rusty opening stanza should concern Lampard. After conceding thrice to West Brom in the first 45 minutes last weekend, the Blues were once again sloppy and incoherent in the first-half today. Though the hosts dominated possession, they failed to make it count while Abraham also missed a half-chance to break the deadlock.
2) Is this the end of the road for Kepa?
Ever since Edouard Mendy has arrived, Kepa Arrizabalaga has been dropped to the bench. He sat out of the Carabao Cup-clash to Tottenham in the midweek and was once again watching from the sidelines here. After his erroneous displays last season, the Spaniard made another gaffe in the loss to Liverpool, showing he’s still not reliable. And even though Mendy had little to do today – he didn’t face a single shot from the Eagles – picked up a clean sheet on league debut, much to Kepa’s dismay, who’s future is now up in the air.
3) Is Silva-Zouma pairing the way forward?
Frank Lampard had three centre-backs at his disposal, and he opted to start Thiago Silva and Kurt Zouma at the heart of the defense, which indeed turned out to be a fine decision as the pair linked up well and completely shut out Crystal Palace. The visitors drove forward on break a couple of times in the first-half, but always ran into a stonewall, thanks to crucial interventions from them. Silva, who had a rough debut against West Brom, was back to his best again while his French counterpart, who also scored a goal, was sublime too, forging an impenetrable partnership.
Three answers from the match
1) Jorginho is still the king of spot-kicks
The Italian’s record from the spot is prolific. From 24 attempts, he’s dispatched 23, including twice in this match, to gloss over the scoreline. The only time Jorginho missed was against Liverpool two weeks ago but has bounced back in spectacular fashion since, burying his attempt in the midweek shootout loss to Tottenham Hotspur, and now this penalty-brace. His technique – trotting towards the spot and doing a ‘bounce’ before shooting – is often criticized for being too risky, but his near-pristine record suggests it’s just alright.
2) Chilwell is alright
One of the biggest concerns for the Blues going into the new season was the left-back position. After struggling for viable options throughout the 2019/20 campaign, they splashed £45 million for Ben Chilwell’s services from Leicester City, and on the first impression, he’s alright. On his Premier League debut for Chelsea, the 23-year old nabbed a goal and an assist to turn a blinder. He was dispossessed a couple of times during initial exchanges but quickly recovered to find his ground and capped off a resoundingly positive league debut.
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3) Werner on the wings – bad idea!
Given that Chelsea has a surfeit of attacking talents in their ranks, Frank Lampard was always going to face a selection dilemma. He played Timo Werner, a natural striker, on the left side of a three-pronged attack today, to accommodate Tammy Abraham, a ploy which rendered him toothless. The German hitman failed to muster a single shot on target and was also denied opportunities from the spot too. Reverting him back to his natural position would be wise, and as far as goals are concerned, its going to come eventually.
