Chelsea analysis: Ruthless exposer by Man Utd a worry with Liverpool up next for Frank Lampard

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James Olley12 August 2019

An early test of nerve awaits Frank Lampard now. The scoreline misrepresents Chelsea’s contribution to a contest which threatened to go either way for an hour or so at Old Trafford, but the shortcomings ruthlessly exposed by Manchester United were avoidable .

It is the lot of the modern manager to talk in terms of philosophy, especially when establishing themselves in a new position, and Lampard inadvertently pinpointed the principal area of weakness when discussing his approach on the eve of this game.

“The philosophy question is a difficult one,” said the new Chelsea manager. “You get asked it a lot and the fact that it gets linked straight to attacking football, that’s not what I’m trying to do here.

“We have to be an adaptable team. The idea of playing attacking football every week in the Premier League… good luck with that, because it’s tough.

“I’ve mentioned I want us to be good off the ball. That’s actually my first call: how fit and how good we can work without the ball before talking about [what we can do] with the ball. We must be difficult to play against so, attacking football or defensive football, it’s all the same.”

As promising as Chelsea were in possession — they created more chances, had more shots on target and hit the woodwork twice — Lampard’s team failed in what he described as his first port of call.

Sat in the Sky Sports studio, Jose Mourinho, perennially wearing an expression of glee at his poacher-turned-gamekeeper role assessing two of his former clubs, described it as a “basic principle” to defend in a compact block of 11 players.

Instead, Chelsea were often “a block of six and another four” according to the Portuguese, affording United space to play on the counter attack when they turned over possession.

And so, combined with making too many individual mistakes, Chelsea allowed Man Utd opportunities to strike — and strike they did.

Centre-back Kurt Zouma’s clumsy challenge on Marcus Rashford gave the England man a chance to score from the penalty spot after 18 minutes.

The 21-year-old striker’s emphatic conversion set United on their way, but Chelsea had already hit the post through Tammy Abraham before Emerson did so again, as the visitors threatened to equalise, parity their play probably deserved at half-time.

Martial and Rashord among the goals at Old Trafford Photo: REUTERS
REUTERS

Yet, two goals in as many minutes just after the hour mark — courtesy of Anthony Martial and Rashford again — clinically put Chelsea to the sword, with a deflected fourth from substitute Daniel James, a £15million summer signing from Swansea, providing the perfect ending for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side.

The return of N’Golo Kante and Antonio Rudiger will help.

Kante proved in a rusty 17-minute cameo precisely why Lampard had reservations about starting the midfielder, despite him recently recovering from a knee injury. The France midfielder in full stride would have done much to stop United transitioning so easily between defence and attack, while Rudiger will surely replace Zouma upon his return to fitness after the latter’s error-strewn display here.

Both should bring more resilience, but the question facing Lampard is this: can he risk Chelsea being this open again? And, inextricably linked to that, is the issue of fielding young players in such high-pressure situations.

Chelsea did not lose because Abraham and Mason Mount were on the pitch, but the “poor decision-making in the final third” which Lampard referenced afterwards was a nod to the naivety that comes with youth.

Mount, on his first senior start for Chelsea, and Abraham, boasting more experience but only making his third outing for the Blues, faded in influence as the match slipped from Chelsea’s grasp.

The second goal came in a counter-attack which began with Abraham losing the ball cheaply to Harry Maguire on the edge of United’s box and he was almost immediately replaced by Olivier Giroud, who might even consider his options with the European transfer window still open should Abraham be set for a run in the side. It is a delicate balance and one that gets no easier with Liverpool lying in wait in Istanbul for Wednesday’s Uefa Super Cup.

Perhaps Lampard could take some instruction from United fielding the youngest team of the opening Premier League weekend (24 years and 227 days on average) and the unwavering support from Chelsea’s travelling fans.

Lower expectations following Eden Hazard’s departure, the club’s transfer ban and Lampard’s willingness to go with youth has created an environment like never before for Chelsea’s academy graduates to forge a first-team career.

Mount and Abraham will surely improve and fans will give Lampard time like few Blues bosses before him. But more durability is needed. Pre-season results are always questionable evidence, but Chelsea conceded three against Reading and Red Bull Salzburg before Borussia Monchengladbach netted twice at the start of the month.

United continued that trend on Sunday and Liverpool look primed to try to extend it further.

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