Premier League
Blues Blown Out In Bournemouth
Chelsea were back to Premier League action after their devastating loss to Arsenal two weeks ago. The slip up came at the expense of the Blues desperate climb to stabilize their place in the top four. Coming off two cup round wins, Chelsea looks to keep the train running in the right direction. Eliminating Tottenham in the Carabao Cup was extra icing on the cake after Spurs have showed to have their number recently. The Blues cannot allow tournament success to overshadow success in the league.
New Toy, Same Problems
It would be trial by fire as Gonzalo Higuain would be trusted into the starting lineup right away. The Argentinian was called upon to right the ship of Chelsea’s well-known striker issues. Whether it was the first game jitters or lack of cohesiveness with his teammates, Higuain would not look comfortable throughout the match. As a result, sending Morata out on loan, hasn’t replaced a common problem. Other than the usual possession boost, Chelsea had nothing to write home about in the first half. Their best chance would come early when Pedro would find Kovacic at the back post where his header would ding off the crossbar. Kepa, who has been steady all season, had a Dr. Jekyll Mr. Hyde tale of two halves. His heroics early on saw the blues carry a goalless draw into half.
Well Below Par
Bournemouth set Chelsea a fire coming out of the half scoring early by the foot of Joshua King thanks to the assist from David Brooks. The Brooks-King connection would be the theme of the entire second half. Brooks and King would have their way with the reckless defending of David Luiz. The two would be responsible for three of the four goals that submerged Chelsea’s hope of righting the ship. Chelsea’s defense would be completely scrambled and look lost throughout the entire second half. Chelsea would end the month with only one win in league play. The team will have to shake this ugly form and prepare to host Huddersfield this Saturday. The lost today finds Chelsea on the outside looking in of the top four. With all eyes on their clash with Manchester City in two weeks, Chelsea must not fall into another trap as they did today.
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