It's safe to say when four of Chelsea's first team stars were named in Chelsea's Premier League 2 side to face Fulham at Kingsmeadow, a win was expected. The club's allocation at the stadium was sold out from the earlier announcement that Ethan Ampadu, Trevoh Chalobah, Ben Chilwell and Carney Chukwuemeka would be involved as they looked to build match fitness.
That the Cottagers came away 3-0 victors proves that football is often not as simple as that. Strike Luke Harris showed clincial instincts in the Blues box to pounce upon three errors and made Chelsea pay.
In part, the 90 minutes was for the first team quartet to build fitness and three of them completed the full game as Thomas Tuchel watched on from the stands. What will the German coach have learned? It's difficult to tell, Mark Robinson's side were the better side in possession but often lacked fluency, perhaps understandably with new players among the starting XI.
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Somewhat ironically, on a night where members of the first team were involved, Chelsea showed a similar trait to the senior side and were unable to fashion high quality opportunities on goal in game where they were generally solid, if not dominant. Check out football.london's player ratings below:
Teddy Sharman-Lowe - Couldn't control the ball when Ben Chilwell fired in an awkward pass across the box in the build up to Luke Harris' second Fulham goal. Saved well in the build up to Harris' third but palmed the ball in the direction of the Cottagers' striker who bundled the ball in. Authoritative when the ball was in the air and did okay in difficult, wet conditions. 6.
Trevoh Chalobah - Looked assured on the right of Chelsea's back three as he looks to earn some match fitness having not featured in Chelsea's opening games. Perhaps a more dominant outing may have been expected. 6.
Ethan Ampadu - Commanded the back three well and was aggressive in his passing lines. His mis-kick did allow the Cottagers in for their opening goal. 6.
Bashir Humphreys - Captain for the night and dominant in his aerial battles. Was unafraid to tell Ben Chilwell what to do and performed well. 7.
Dion Rankine - Draws fouls all day long when given the opportunity to drive forward with the ball. The wing-back provided Chelsea's most teasing deliveries into Fulham's box. 6.
Xavier Simons - The most combative midfielder on display and was unafraid to put in a firm tackle at the base of the Blues midfield. 6.
Carney Chukwuemeka - The £20 million signing's first appearance in Blue following a disrupted pre-season at Aston Villa as he waited for his future to be resolved. Chukwuemeka would have liked to make more of an impact but kept things simple in the centre of the park. Looked a step above on the rare occasion he did drive with the ball through the middle. 6.
Ben Chilwell - Took a little while for Chilwell to warm into the game and did fire a tricky pass to Sharman-Lowe in the build up to Fulham's second goal. Continually shouting 'Ampa' in an attempt to receive the ball from the centre of defence and appeared more determined as the game went on to prove a point. 6.
Omari Hutchinson - The excitement every time he touches the ball is palpable and the forward is always looking to create something. A lot of fun to watch. 7.
Ben Elliott - Had a lively first half outing as he continued the good form he's started to build this summer. Showed good ability in tight spaces and one of Chelsea's primary threats, if not close enough to the opposition goal. Fed Lewis Hally in the second half but the substitute could only blaze over. 7.
Jayden Wareham - Produced a battling all-round performance but was unable to find the ball in the box to challenge the Fulham goal. 6.
Substitutes
Lewis Hall - Had plenty of involvement after his introduction and blazed over a good opportunity in the final 10 minutes. 6.
Mason Burstow - Operated more on the last man for the Blues but struggled to receive the ball in the box, much like Wareham who he replaced. 6.
Joe Haigh - Solid cameo when he entered the field. 6.
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