Cole Palmer grew to become the primary Premier League participant to attain 4 objectives within the first half of a recreation as Chelsea gained an entertaining and breathless match towards Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge.
The victory is Chelsea’s fourth of their final 5 within the league, persevering with a constructive begin for Enzo Maresca.
The Athletic’s Liam Twomey analyses the important thing speaking factors from a Blues perspective…
That is simply what Cole Palmer does
Jogging alongside in entrance of the silenced Brighton followers within the Shed Finish, Palmer greeted his fourth purpose in 20 first-half minutes at Stamford Bridge the identical means he responds to seemingly something: with a nonchalant, barely mischievous grin.
It’s unlikely he knew he had made Premier League historical past as the primary participant to attain 4 objectives in a primary half, however it will not have modified his response. That is merely what he does, and Brighton had been the newest victims of his ruthless brilliance. Such a file appeared to belong within the realm of fantasy when Palmer raced onto an Enzo Fernandez via ball within the nineteenth minute, with Brighton main 1-0, and steadied himself earlier than beating the advancing Bart Verbruggen with a clipped shot that bounced off the far publish and away to security.
However the perfect goalscorers have quick reminiscences. Palmer had the ball within the internet barely a minute later from a just about an identical transfer, just for the assistant referee’s offside flag to be validated by a VAR test. Two minutes later, Nicolas Jackson gave him his best likelihood of the sport, taking out Verbruggen with a sq. go that allowed him to fit into an empty internet.
From there started the 20-minute stretch during which Palmer bent the motion to his will, changing a usually nerveless penalty after Jadon Sancho had been introduced down after which curling a chic free kick into the highest nook from 25 yards. By the point he locked eyes with Sancho, darted diagonally onto the winger’s exact go and lashed a shot in on the close to publish, even lots of the Brighton followers had been too awestruck to react.
It might have been much more. Palmer missed two nice probabilities so as to add to his tally within the second half, whereas Jackson wasted a number of presentable alternatives to earn him assists. He might want to make do with simply the ten (ten!) direct purpose involvements from his first six Premier League appearances this season, reinforcing his standing as Chelsea’s talisman.
And simply as we publish this, he has scored once more.
— The Athletic | Soccer (@TheAthleticFC) September 28, 2024
Chelsea can’t hold getting dragged into basketball video games
After a season when so many matches descended into transitional chaos below Mauricio Pochettino, it’s good to see Chelsea lastly controlling video games below Maresca… (don’t fear, the sarcasm is light-hearted).
Chelsea are struggling to keep up the possession stranglehold Maresca is on the lookout for, however we’re nonetheless within the early weeks as the top coach seems to be to combine a brand new fashion of play. There have been sufficient flashes of particular person high quality and collective coherence to be optimistic.
Extra considerably, few groups might management a recreation when the opposition arrange as Brighton did right here. Fabian Hurzeler arrange a five-man (and generally six-man) urgent unit to harass Chelsea in their very own defensive third, with a four-man defence stationed completely on the midway line.
Brighton’s method fully dictated the phrases of engagement in a ludicrously open first half. Twice their suffocating stress yielded Chelsea errors that led to objectives, however nearly each time the house aspect managed to play via or across the visiting swarm they nearly instantly discovered themselves clear via on purpose, usually in numbers.
Chelsea skilled one thing related away at Tottenham Hotspur final season, although Ange Postecoglou’s insistence on having his 9 males play an offside lure on the midway line remodeled that recreation into one thing even weirder. Pochettino needed to patiently information his younger gamers to the proper solutions that day. No such hand-holding was required this time round.
Jackson, Noni Madueke and Palmer usually timed their runs in behind the Brighton defence properly — even the offside calls had been shut — and the passes searching for them out had been fast and correct. Once they bore down on goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen they weren’t particularly medical, however medical sufficient to show the folly of Hurzeler’s technique.
In the long run, Maresca doesn’t need to see his crew recurrently dragged into the soccer equal of a basketball recreation, however sustaining momentum is paramount. Towards a crew as chaotic as Brighton, a win secured by superior firepower is usually the best-case situation.
Chelsea entertained towards Brighton, however Maresca will need extra management (Glyn Kirk/AFP through Getty Photographs)
Sanchez errors crank up the stress
Three minutes into stoppage time on the finish of the primary half, an surprising cheer went up within the Matthew Harding Stand. Having taken just a few moments to think about his choices, Robert Sanchez had determined to go lengthy from his purpose kick and the aid of that alone was an excessive amount of for the Chelsea supporters behind him to carry in.
Sanchez’s performances had been bettering however the goalkeeping recreation is brutal. Errors linger far longer within the collective reminiscence than saves or calm passes below stress, and Sanchez’s largest flaw has at all times been his consistency — at instances technical, at instances psychological.
His first error towards Brighton compounded a number of others that had preceded it.
Moises Caicedo performed Levi Colwill into hassle in his personal field, and the defender’s tried clearance was then deflected up within the air by Carlos Baleba. At that second, Chelsea’s big goalkeeper noticed Georginio Rutter towering over Marc Cucurella and made the expensive choice to return for a ball he might by no means declare.
His second error was far worse, and extra according to the others which have undermined Chelsea supporters’ religion in him: a unfastened first-time go right into a harmful central space, pounced upon by Baleba forward of Caicedo and instantly become an infuriatingly simple purpose.
Sanchez has the religion of Maresca, and summer time signing Filip Jorgensen has not finished a lot in his outings to counsel he ought to play as an alternative, however Chelsea have two goalkeepers who count on to be first alternative. Which means weekly stress, and it’ll solely develop with each error that Sanchez makes.
What did Enzo Maresca say?
We are going to carry you this after he has spoken on the post-match press convention.
What subsequent for Chelsea?
Thursday, October 3: Gent (H), UEFA Convention League, 8pm BST, 3pm ET
Sunday, October 6: Nottingham Forest (H), Premier League, 2pm BST, 9am ET
Advisable studying
(Prime photograph: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC through Getty Photographs)