For 25 dazzling minutes Chelsea looked every bit the team that had seen more than £500m of investment in the past two transfer windows. With five of the available six January arrivals and one more from the summer in the starting XI, Graham Potter’s team appeared utterly dominant and, were it not for two slender offside calls, should have been clear of sight.
Joao Felix, back from the three-game ban earned on his debut, was full of zest. Benoit Badiashile looked entirely unruffled at centre back. Mykhaylo Mudryk and Noni Madueke showed promising early signs on the flanks.
And, in the middle, Enzo Fernandez dictated the tempo to the extent that midway through the opening half the possession stats hovered around 80% for the visitors.
