Month: August 2014

Chelsea maintained their perfect start to the season by beating Everton in a nine-goal thriller at Goodison Park. The Blues led from the first minute to the last in the game, but Everton didn’t give them an easy ride in what could turn out to be the game of the season.

The Blues raced in to a two-goal lead through Diego Costa and Branislav Ivanovic, before Kevin Mirallas pulled one back before half time. A Seamus Coleman own goal made it 3-1, before Steven Naismith got the home side back in the game. Nemanja Matic scored his first goal for Chelsea, then former Blue Samuel Eto’o scored for Everton. Goals from Ramires and Costa sealed the points for the visitors.

Before the game there were doubts about Costa’s fitness, with the striker struggling with a hamstring injury. Despite not being at 100% he started the game, and he started with a bang. Cesc Fabregas played a brilliant through ball, and Costa got on the end to put the Blues ahead after just 35 seconds.

Their great start didn’t end there, with Ivanovic doubling the lead just minutes later. The Serbian latched onto a Willian cross and fired past Howard, but he looked to have been in an offside position, much to the annoyance of the home fans. Everton looked shell-shocked, but they got back on track and controlled the end of the half, grabbing a goal back through a Mirallas header.

Everton came out looking for blood in the second half, and the Blues initially looked vulnerable. Romelu Lukaku went through on goal, and it was only an incredible last gasp tackle that kept the Blues ahead. They then regained their two-goal lead when Eden Hazard ran down the line, and his cross was accidently turned into his own net by Coleman.

That kicked off the game’s goal rush, with Naismith cutting the lead just two minutes later. Matic then grabbed his first Chelsea goal shortly after, with his shot deflecting off Sylvain Distin and nestling in the bottom corner. Everton went straight up the other end, and Eto’o scored to make it 4-3. Barely a minute later Ramires went up the other end of the pitch and it became 5-3 to the Pensioners.

That seemed to be the end of the scoring, but Costa wrapped up the game with a great finish in the 90th minute. Substitute John Obi Mikel picked up on a mistake by Besic, before back-heeling into the path of Costa, who wrong footed Howard and Phil Jagielka with a step over before slotting home.

It rounded off an impressive evening for Costa and Chelsea’s attack, but there were defensive mistakes to bemoan as well. After the game, Mourinho tried to look at the positives, and gave an update on the pursuit of Loic Remy. “I think if the salt and pepper of football is goals then to have nine goals in a Premier League match is fantastic ingredients so I think (we saw) two teams that played the offensive way fantastically well.”

“We were killers in attack, especially on the counter-attack, so when you come to this stadium and get three points it is a reason to be happy. When you come here and score six goals, obviously my players did well.”

On Remy, Mourinho said, “I know that we’re trying since yesterday to get Loic Remy, since we knew Fernando was leaving. Now it’s time to make some calls and have news. We have a fantastic doctor and I trust him completely. They will identify any problem.”

LCN Man of the Match: Diego Costa

Chelsea had Diego Costa to thank as they maintained their 100% start to the season with a 2-0 win over Leicester at Stamford Bridge. The Blues had to work hard for the win, with Leicester holding out for over an hour, but ultimately the result was just about deserved.

Leicester weren’t just hanging in the game, the Foxes had the better chances in the first half, and deserved lead on the run of play. David Nugent went close after the half time break, but it was the Blues who broke the deadlock. Once again it was Diego Costa who came to the rescue, scoring from close range. Eden Hazard then secured the win with just over 10 minutes left.

Leicester were the second promoted side that Chelsea have faced this season, after their 3-1 win over Burnley last Monday night. Jose Mourinho’s team started slowly here, and it looked like the Chelsea of last season who couldn’t break down smaller teams had returned. Leicester had enough chances to cause a shock, but thanks to Thibault Courtois the game stayed goalless long enough for the home side to get a foothold in the match.

After an hour, the hosts finally found their way through to goal. Costa, the man brought in to cure Chelsea’s striking problems, put them ahead. Branislav Ivanovic’s cross into the box bounced around before falling to the Spaniard, and he had no problem firing home for his second goal of the season.

The second Chelsea goal came from Eden Hazard, although he was helped by poor keeping from Leicester’s Kasper Schmeichel. The Foxes’ goalie allowed the ball to slip underneath him, gifting Hazard his first goal of the season.

This was far from the, “90 minute performance” that Jose Mourinho asked from his side after the win at Burnley, but it was still an important one. This is exactly the kind of game that Chelsea failed to win last season. After their struggles with packed defences last term, teams are going to come to the Bridge and defend deep, but with Fabregas and Costa now in the side the Blues can break the resolve of stubborn visitors. This is a big step for Mourinho’s side, and there is surely better to come.

After the game, Mourinho was honest about their slow start, and thanked his keeper for keeping them in the game. “We didn’t play well first half,” Mourinho said. “Leicester showed great defensive intensity, and came with fast transitions, trying to scare us on the counter-attack. We were a bit slow – slow moving the ball, slow thinking – and we needed to change. Sometimes you don’t need to change players, just your attitude towards the game. And we did that.

On Courtois, Mourinho added: “That’s what Petr did so many times in this club year after year, so it’s nothing new for us. It’s important at a big club to have the kind of goalkeeper who’s almost sleeping during the match, and suddenly in the right moment he says ‘yes, I’m here’. Thibaut did this, the same way Petr did so many times for us.”

LCN Man of the Match: Branislav Ivanovic

Diego Costa had a debut to remember as he scored in Chelsea’s 3-1 win over newly promoted Burnley. The Spaniard was playing in his first official game after a £32m pound move from Atletico Madrid, and his goal proved to be the turning point of the night. Goals from Andre Schurrle and Branislav Ivanovic helped Chelsea to the win, after Scott Arfield’s opener for the home side, which surprised a few people.

Chelsea started the game with Thibault Courtois in goal, leaving club legend Petr Cech on the bench. Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas also made their debuts, while Filipe Luis was left on the bench. That team selection looked wrong at the start after Arfield put Burnley ahead; his volley was an incredible effort, and there was little that debutant Courtois could do about it.

Chelsea had mustered a great response after the opener however, with Costa flying straight back and scoring just three minutes later. His first goal for the club was a simple tap in, but his quick reactions show he’s exactly what Chelsea need. After that Costa had a penalty appeal turned down, which looked dubious, but Chelsea went from strength to strength from there.

Schurrle scored the second just four minutes later, with the goal coming after a great passing move. Ivanovic and Fabregas played great passes in the build up, before Schurrle found the net past Tom Heaton. The assist from Fabregas was a fantastic pass, showing exactly why Chelsea brought him in.

The game was wrapped up when Ivanovic scored the third after 34 minutes. The Serbian was first to the corner from Fabregas, tapping in from close range. That goal put the result beyond Burnley and Chelsea were in control of the game from then on.

This was the kind of game that Chelsea struggled with last term, but coming back from 1-0 down to boss the game and comfortably take the three points shows how much they have improved over the summer. That’s been helped by the signings of Fabregas and Costa, and Mourinho was proud of both in his comments after the game.

The Portuguese said to Sky Sports, “You gave Cesc the man of the match and I completely agree. He was the maestro and controlled the tempo of the game with (Nemanja) Matic. He dictated the speed and intensity of the game.”

On Costa, Mourinho said, “Diego did something very important for us which was the first goal. His movement and interaction with Eden (Hazard), Oscar and Schurrle was very good, although I feel sorry for him because it was a penalty and never a yellow card.”

Mourinho was adamant that those two signings would prove key this season. “I always thought that Diego and Cesc would bring us to the dimension we want because they are different players to what we had in the past. We need that striker who can hold the ball and have interaction with other players, and we need that kind of midfielder that dictates the intensity in the centre.” Could they be the final pieces to the jigsaw that propel Chelsea to the title? Time will tell.

LCN Man of the match: Cesc Fabregas