Chelsea vs Malmo: Three lessons learnt in comfortable UCL victory

3. A good bounce back for Chelsea

Chelsea is one of the favourites to win the UEFA Champions League this season but its tame start against Zenit St. Petersberg and Juventus raised a few questions about the Blues’ ability to retain the big-eared cup. The Blues were one of the most dominant sides in the competition last season. They were undoubtedly the giant killers, taking down the likes of Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Manchester City with relative ease. Tuchel really turned them into the team to beat, but this season, they were struggling a bit on the scoring front. Chelsea has been excellent defensively and it found it hard to break open the stubborn defences of some teams both in the Champions League and the Premier League.

While the Blues started their campaign in a lively manner, winning the Super Cup and thrashing rival Crystal Palace, 3-0, they soon started to fall off in the scoring department. In the match against Zenit, they were expected to easily go past the Russian side but could not break through the organized Russian defence. Ultimately, a sole headed goal by Lukaku did the trick. Against Juventus, the masters of defensive football, Chelsea bossed the possession and only had one shot on target to show for it. The Turin side only needed one moment of magic to win the game.

This 4-0 dominant display was a much-needed comeback for the Blues. It seems like they are creating clear cut chances again. On Wednesday, the English side just overwhelmed the Swedish side and cut through its defence time after time. From Lukaku to Antonio Rudiger, everyone was committed to the attack and everyone wanted to finish the game off by the first half. Chelsea’s next game is against Norwich City in the Premier League. Hopefully it can perform in the same manner and play with the same intensity as it did tonight.

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