Liverpool 0-0 Chelsea – Match produces stalemate as lack of overall quality prevails

Mykhailo Mudryk had a good cameo as he made his debut for the club from

the bench

Both teams came into the game sitting in mid table and underperforming. There were also a lot of injuries in both squads to some key players. The effect of this did show throughout the game. Chelsea had ten injuries as Mateo Kovacic was added to the list for this game. Joao Felix was once again suspended as he served the second game of his three match ban.

In terms of team news Marc Cucurella came in for Carney Chukwuemeka and this meant Lewis Hall went into midfield with Jorginho. Liverpool also had a few of their players unavailable such as Van Dijk, Diaz, Firminio and Jota. Some other players were also on the bench .

Chelsea seemed to lineup with three at the back with Hakim Ziyech and Marc Cucurella as wing backs but this was quite fluid as has been quite usual in and out of possession.

Via BBC Sport

Chelsea slightly shaded possession with 52%. The blues completed more passes (437 v 375) with slightly more accuracy (81% to 79%). Both teams were quite sloppy in possession and the ball was given away quite frequently, especially in midfield areas.

Liverpool took more shots (15) with 6 on target compared to Chelsea’s 11 (also 6 on target). Chelsea though created 4 big chances compared to Liverpool (0) but were unable to convert any of them. Chelsea had a 1.76 xg with Liverpool’s at 1.44.

Stats via FotMob. Xg from @xGphilosophy

Once again Thiago Silva and Benoit Badiashile formed a good partnership in defence. Composed on the ball and defensively they were able to keep Liverpool’s attackers out for the most part. A video compilation of them both is shown below. Silva was again probably man of the match and it seems he has had a positive impact on Badiashile.

Thiago Silva vs. Liverpool:

112 touches

83/91 passes completed (91% accuracy)

9 passes into final ⅓

6 clearances

3 interceptions

3 duels won

3 blocks

2 aerial duels won

1 chance created

1 clean sheet

1 tackle made

1 shot

0 x dribbled past

0 fouls

Stats via Squawka

I believe that playing Lewis Hall in midfield proved to be a bit of a difficult task for the youngster away at Anfield but the lack of options due to injury may have forced this a bit. He performed quite admirably but had a couple of shaky moments which could have been punished on another day. Kovacic was ruled out before this game and Loftus-Cheek has just returned from injury and was on the bench. Potter will be hoping to get players back before the next game in around two weeks.

One of the main positives from this game was the debut and performance of Mykhailo Mudryk from the bench. He did some good things in his cameo and stretched the opposition with his pace and skill. Having not played any matches since November, his performance was quite impressive.

Mykhailo Mudryk v Liverpool after coming on in the 55th minute

13/14 accurate passes (93% accuracy)

2 passes into final third

2/3 successful dribbles

3/3 tackles won

7/10 duels won

1 foul won

4 ball recoveries

(FotMob)

Cesar Azpilicueta also came on to make his 500th appearance for the club, joining an elite group and also becomes the first foreign player to do so. A great achievement for the Spaniard who came to the club in 2012 for just £7 million from Marseille. 👏

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 John Terry - 715

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Frank Lampard - 648

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Ron Harris - 609

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Peter Bonetti - 539

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 John Hollins - 509

🇪🇸 Cesar Azpilicueta - 500

There were some promising signs from Chelsea, taking into consideration still having a host of injuries to key players. Graham Potter was pleased with the teams performance and also Mudryk.

‘I am happy with the performance overall as it is never easy here, it’s a huge challenge,’ Potter said as he started his analysis.

‘I thought we played well and were the better side in the first half. They started the second half better, but we had a couple of chances with Mykhailo [Mudryk] and Carney [Chukwuemeka].

‘We wanted to win but we take the point and move forward. I liked the energy of the team and what we tried to do.” (via Chelseafc.com)

There is a bit of a break now with the next Chelsea game against Fulham set to be on 3rd February.

Chelsea produce improved performance in much needed 1-0 win over Crystal Palace

Before the match started the fans at Stamford Bridge and some of Gianluca Vialli’s former teammates as well as current players paid tribute to the great man and Chelsea legend who sadly passed away just over a week ago.

In terms of team news Graham Potter made five changes to the team beaten against Fulham in midweek. He gave a full debut to 21 year old French centre back Benoit Badiashile who was signed from Monaco earlier this month. He came in for Kalidou Kouliably. Cesar Azpilicueta was also on the bench. Jorginho came into midfield with Conor Gallagher and Carney Chukwuemeka also given starts in place of Mateo Kovacic and the injured Denis Zakaria. Hakim Ziyech also came in for the suspended Joao Felix.

Chelsea seemed to line up initially with a back four with Chalobah at right back and 18 year old Lewis Hall allowed to attack further forward on the left side. The structure and positions/personnel seemed to be interchangeable though. The lineup initially was shown as a 4-3-3 but looked more like 4-2-3-1 when the team was on the pitch and started playing. Conor Gallagher seemed to start next to Jorginho in a deeper role. Mount started on the left and Chukwuemeka was in the number ten role but all three (Gallagher, Mount and Chukwuemeka) seemed to interchange and rotate at points throughout the match. It also seemed a bit different out of possession and in possession as has been the case with Potter in most games. The team (bar a few players) was a relatively young one with the number of injuries currently in the squad playing a role.

It was not a vintage performance from the blues but at the end the fans and everyone involved with the club will be relieved with the three points. The team dominated possession (62%) and had chances to take the lead in the first half but did not capitalise on them. In the end the only goal of the game came via a cross from Hakim Ziyech after a short corner which Kai Havertz headed in.

There were quite a few good performances within the team. These included Kepa in goal, who made some crucial saves, Hakim Ziyech who generally had a good game and also provided the assist for Kai Havertz’ winning goal. Thiago Silva was also very good as is quite usual, especially in the second half helping to preserve the win and clean sheet. Conor Gallagher had arguably his best game of the season. Benoit Badiashile on debut looked very assured next to Silva. Silva could have been given man of the match and Kepa also for his saves but I will give some focus and provide some data on three other players who I thought performed well in this particular game.

Benoît Badiashile v. Crystal Palace.

72/75 passes completed (96 % accuracy) - most passes completed and most accurate passer

11 duels won

6 aerial duels won

9 clearances (most)

2/4 tackles won

6 ball recoveries

0 x dribbled past

0 fouls

Gallagher’s stats and his heat map (via sofa score) show his combative and energetic performance.

58 passes completed (88% pass accuracy)

21 final third passes

1/1 long balls completed

4 dribbles completed

2 crosses completed

3 key passes

16 duels won

6 fouls won

Hakim Ziyech v Crystal Palace

28 final third passes (most)

17 passes into opp. box (most)

5 touches in opp. box

4 passes into final ⅓

4 successful dribbles (most)

3 shots

2 chances created

1 assist

4/5 tackles won

7 ball recoveries  

(Stats via Squawka and FotMob)

Graham Potter was pleased most with the win and three points.

“Overall we played quite well, they had their moments as well but today was about getting the victory - park it as three valuable points against a team that was pushing as well.

We try to play well and I thought at times we did, you have to understand the context of the situation we are in so it isn't going to be sensational football all the time. The boys have worked hard."

Kai Havertz who scored the winning goal underlined the importance of the win and some of the difficulties surrounding the club in recent weeks.

"The last few weeks were tough. For everyone at the club, it is not easy under these circumstances, 

A lot of things changed this year. We have so many injuries. Today we had five young players in the starting XI, they are doing a really good job at the moment."

(quotes via BBC Sport)

It was a crucial win and three points. The performance was also encouraging and improved from recent games. Chelsea will be looking to carry that forward in a big clash away to Liverpool next Saturday. The top four may be out of reach for now but with half the season still to go they will be looking to climb the table.

Reece James proves to be key man as Chelsea gain a crucial win over Milan in the Champions League

Chelsea emphatically beat AC Milan 3-0 in a great team performance as goals from Wesley Fofana, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Reece James sealed what was in the end a comfortable win.

It turned out to be a great game to attend as Chelsea gained a valuable win in their quest to qualify for the knockout stages after a poor start to the group stage.

Graham Potter changed his starting formation from the Crystal Palace game as he opted for a back three consisting of Wesley Fofana, Thiago Silva and Kalidou Koulibaly. Reece James and Ben Chilwell were the wing backs. Mateo Kovacic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek started in central Midfield. The front three were Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Milan had begun the game relatively well but Chelsea took the lead from a corner as Wesley Fofana struck a loose ball into the goal after an initial header from Thiago Silva was not dealt with effectively by Milan goalkeeper Tatarusanu. Fofana then went down injured and had to be replaced by Trevoh Chalobah. Hopefully the injury is not serious but the prognosis doesn't seem to be great from pictures as he left the stadium on crutches.

Krunic had a guilt edged chance just before half time after a Rafael Leao run into the box but his shot went over the bar under pressure from Chilwell. Chelsea and especially Reece James dealt with the threat of Leao well as he was kept relatively quiet.

James had an excellent game and contributed in the attacking third also with a goal and assist for Aubamayemg with a great cross. His goal was a fine finish in the top of the goal from the near post after being played in by Raheem Sterling.

Reece James’ stats vs. Milan -

100 touches (most)

51/61 passes completed (84 % accuracy)

7 ground duels won

4 long balls completed

2 key passes

2 crosses completed

2/2 dribbles completed

1 assist

1 goal

Heat map via SofaScore

Ruben Loftus-Cheek was combative in midfield as he won the most duels (10). He also won 4 fouls and completed 40/47 passes (85% accuracy). He worked well with Mateo Kovacic as they provided protection infront of the defence and also broke forward when possible. There was good balance to both their performances.

Aubameyang didn't have his best game but popped up with an important goal as he got on the end of the cross from James to score from close range. This was his second goal in as many games after his strike at Crystal Palace at the weekend. He completed 13/17 passes (76 % accuracy) and also created 1 chance.

Chelsea only had slightly more possession than Milan with 51 %. They had more shots (10 v 4) and more shots on target (6 v 1). Chelsea scored 3 goals from 1.4 Expected goals (stat via @xGPhilosophy on Twitter). They were more clinical in this game than previously and this proved to be key in the end.

Milan were relatively poor and despite having some moments, overall their performance was disappointing. They were missing some key players including goalkeeper Mike Maignan, Theo Hernanadez ,David Calabria and Simon Kjaer amongst others.

Graham Potter was pleased with the result and performance.

"We started off a little nervous for the first five minutes, which is probably just a result of us wanting to do so well so much, but then you saw the appetite of the players. We got control of it and offered a threat, pushing before the goal, and it’s always important to get the first goal obviously.

Overall, I can’t complain with a clean sheet, three goals and great personality from the players, so it was really good."

On the Fofana injury he said -

"We’ll have to scan it tomorrow and see how he is but there’s nothing to report at the moment. That’s the one disappointing thing about the evening so we have our fingers crossed. We’re concerned but I don’t want to speculate on it now.

These things happen. He’s a young guy and a strong guy but we’ll support him."

He also had words of high praise for Reece James -

"We love him and he’s so important for us. His potential is he could be a Chelsea legend and that’s the level he has, but for that to happen he has to be part of a successful team and that’s what we’re working towards."

Chelsea have a game at home to Wolves on Saturday before the return leg in Milan at the San Siro next week.

A video I made from the game -