Chalobah’s rise continues
There was a stage in the summer when Trevoh Chalobah’s future at Chelsea was uncertain. The academy graduate had – for reasons that were not entirely clear – lost the faith of Thomas Tuchel and interest from a number of sides across Europe have mounted.
Several clubs in Serie A were prepared to take the 23-year-old on loan. RB Leipzig were also interested in a deal with fitness concerns at centre-back. Yet a conversation with those in the new Chelsea ownership group convinced Chalobah to remain at Stamford Bridge.
Still, Chalobah had to bide his time. Just one appearance was made under Tuchel prior to the German coach’s departure. And he didn’t start in either of Graham Potter’s opening two matches in charge: against Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League and Crystal Palace in the Premier League.
READ MORE Every word Graham Potter said on Chelsea vs Man United, Kepa, Chalobah, Koulibaly, Kovacic, more
What Chalobah needed was an opportunity – and he got one against AC Milan. The defender replaced the injured Wesley Fofana midway through the first half of the game at Stamford Bridge and he produced a composed performance against the dangerous Rafael Leao.
Chalobah has played every minute since and improved game by game. His display against Manchester United was his best of the campaign to date, even though the late goal was conceded.
“I thought he was fantastic, got better and better, grew into the game,” said Graham Potter in his post-match press conference. “He is playing such a lot as well. It’s not easy with [Marcus] Rashford making runs in behind constantly, he’s got incredible pace. So I thought Trevoh did really well.”
Much of Chalobah’s best work in a Chelsea shirt has come on the right of a back three. Yet for an hour against United, he was deployed in a back four alongside Thiago Silva. And he didn’t miss a beat. Chalobah handled Rashford with controlled aggressively, always putting pressure on the United forward or stepping ahead to win the ball.
With the World Cup beginning in a month’s time, Chalobah has timed his run of form perfectly to put himself in contention for the England squad. There aren’t too many better centre-backs – given recent performances – Gareth Southgate could call upon for the tournament in Qatar.
Injury concerns mount
Not once since taking charge at Chelsea last month has Potter had a full squad to work with – and yet that is something rarely discussed by pundits and opposition supporters alike. Even those within the Blues fanbase have often brushed over the lengthy absentee list.
Against United, Reece James, one of the finest in his position in world football, could not be called upon. Wesley Fofana and Kalidou Koulibaly, recruited for in excess of £100million in the summer, were also absent. And N’Golo Kante, described as Chelsea’s own Kylian Mbappe last season by Tuchel, is sidelined until February.
There is also the ongoing concern over the knee issue that has plagued Mateo Kovacic since pre-season. “You look at the schedule, it’s Sunday-Wednesday-Saturday and it’s impossible for him to start all the games,” explained Potter yesterday. “We’ve planned for him to have less time than he has but things have conspired so he has been on the pitch. We all know his quality but at the same time, we’ve got to understand the player’s situation as well.”
Potter has tried to rotate his squad, tried to give players much-needed breaks from the side amid a relentless schedule ahead of the World Cup. But despite his best efforts and the work of the medical staff, injury issues continue to mount for Chelsea. And that shouldn’t be overlooked.
Fernandes can't rattle Jorginho
After 83 minutes of yesterday's contest at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea hadn't registered a shot on target. And beyond a moment of genius or a well-worked set-piece routine, it didn't appear as though that would change. But Scott McTominay decided to give the Blues a helping hand.
As a corner was swung into the Manchester United penalty area, he grappled with Armando Broja and pulled down the academy graduate. Stuart Attwell pointed to the penalty spot and Chelsea had been handed a huge opportunity to open up a lead in what had been a tight contest.
United's players weren't happy with the decision and did their best to delay the penalty being taken – the obligatory VAR check took time. All the while, Jorginho stood away from the crowd, ball in hand and mentally preparing himself for yet another high-pressure moment.
The Italian only approached the penalty spot after the majority of the United players had been cleared. But Bruno Fernandes remained and the Portuguese – a purveyor of the hopping technique used by Jorginho – opted to deliver a few words of wisdom to David de Gea as to how to stop the spot-kick.
That Fernandes did this in Jorginho's eye-line was pure gamesmanship, an attempt to get into the midfielder's head. Ultimately, it didn't prove fruitful as Jorginho coolly sent de Gea the wrong way from 12 yards to give Chelsea a late lead. Unfortunately, it's not one they were able to hold on to as Casemiro's late header ensured the points were shared.
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