Chelsea: Three lessons learnt from Blues’ crushing of the Clarets
Chelsea ended its run of games away from home unbeaten with a crushing win of Burnley. Here are three of the lessons we learnt from the match.
In what can only be described as a roller coaster season, Chelsea’s results have been a mixed bag. The Blues hit the road for a run of games away from home and given the team’s form, few knew what to expect. Chelsea is now unbeaten in its last six after a shaky start to the campaign. Slowly but surely, the team’s core began finding full fitness and the Blues have now overcome a sluggish start. Hats off to Frank Lampard for the way he and his staff have persevered through these tough times.
Perhaps the performance that personified Chelsea’s progression most is the most recent affair at Turf Moor. The Blues took on a struggling, but always stingy, Burnley side. Sean Dyche’s team is not afraid to sit all 11 men behind the ball, making it nearly impossible to break down the home side. However, Lampard’s men found a way. Thiago Silva—the captain on the day—and his teammates managed to put three past Nick Pope en route to a 3-0 victory in northwestern England. It was an emphatic victory and when paired with the Krasnodar conquering midweek, it’s the most complete pair of matches the Blues have strung together in quite awhile.
We learned many things about Lampard’s team in the win, but here are the three standout aspects:
1. There’s something about Edouard Mendy
Edouard Mendy has played in six matches for Chelsea, allowing one goal and keeping five clean sheets. Those numbers are welcomed sights to Blues fans everywhere; so much so, it’s the topic of discussion for nearly every Chelsea supporter across the globe. In terms of statistics, Mendy is off to the best start by Blues goalkeeper since the great Petr Cech in 2004. However, the stats from the Burnley match aren’t exactly the biggest takeaway between the sticks.
The Senegalese sensation faced only five shots—none of which on target—at Turf Moor. In other words, he didn’t have much to do. Yet, the Blues were as solid as a rock at the back. This is because Mendy has a certain something about him. It’s nearly impossible to describe since I’m not on the pitch with Mendy as my last line of defense, nor have I ever played football at a professional level. However, it doesn’t take a footballing genius to see that Mendy has a calming presence.
Chelsea’s back line looks much more composed and confident with the 28-year-old in goal, compared to Kepa Arrizabalaga. When the Spaniard was in the starting XI, the defense didn’t have matches like this. It seemed that no matter how the team played, the ball would always find the back of the Blues’ net. All of those fears and suspicions have subsided with Mendy’s arrival. He may not be one of the world’s biggest names, but Mendy is exactly what the doctor ordered for Lampard’s side.