Liverpool were to face Chelsea with just one recognised centre back. With Joe Gomez and Joel Matip unavailable Fabinho slotted in next to Virgil van Dijk. It was the the dream that quickly turned into a nightmare. Of course he turned into prime Fabio Cannavaro.
As good as Liverpool, and Fabinho, were - ultimately Chelsea were once again the architects of their own undoing. A few moments of madness and a system that has not yet come together had bigger impact than Thiago Alcantara passing it around ten men. Stats be damned.
N'Golo Kante, when fit, is virtually faultless. With one exception - his fear of the opposition box. Either Frank Lampard needs to insist Mateo Kovacic is the one to play further forward or tell Kante he is in fact allowed to shoot. In the first half, Kante made a great run alongside Kai Havertz and Timo Werner and found himself with the ball with a fantastic opportunity to give Chelsea the lead. Within about five passes the ball was back with Kepa.
Andreas Christensen. Oh dear. He might be good with the ball at his feet, but his defensive work has proved to be suspect at best. It's all well and good to give players the opportunity to play themselves into form - one that at one point had Borussia Monchengladbach begging to sign him permanently. But it hasn't worked out on his Premier League return. He may need to sit out a few more matches beyond the suspension. Fikayo Tomori - this is your chance.
Kepa's error for Sadio Mane's second goal was poor. It was a mistake. But the obsession with him is getting proper weird. He had a poor season last year. He's low on confidence. None of you watch Edouard Mendy on the reg so don't even pretend you do. Kepa was a really good keeper under Maurizio Sarri and had potential. Maybe it would be worth exploring why it's actually gone wrong. No one just turns into a bad player and can't turn it around.
Anyone with a ridiculous penalty run-up will get caught out eventually. This was Jorginho's moment. And while much was made of the 100% record he boasted before Sunday -- it was only eight penalties. It's not exactly the biggest sample size. Should one of the Germans take his place as designated penalty taker? Timo Werner has taken 16 and missed three. Reward could outweigh the risk.
We're all feeling a bit low after the weekend. But there's loads of new players to still come in. It was only the second game of the season. Man United lost to Crystal Palace. And had N'Golo Kante taken that shot, Chelsea kept 11 men on the pitch, or Jorginho scored that penalty the mood may have been a lot different on Monday morning.
jb x
RESULT: Chelsea 0-2 Liverpool
GOALS: Mane 50, Mane 54
CHELSEA XI: Kepa, James, Zouma, Christensen, Alonso, Jorginho (Barkley 79), Kante, Kovacic (Abraham 79), Mount, Havertz (Tomori 46), Werner
STAR MAN: Fabinho
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