Graham Potter’s Chelsea made it three wins in the space of a week with a comfortable 3-0 win against managerless Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon.
A much-changed Blues team from their equally impressive 3-0 win over AC Milan in the Champions League in midweek had a first half characterised primarily by multiple chances not being put away.
That was until the final minute of added time when Mason Mount floated a cross towards Kai Havertz, who looped a header over the despairing Jose Sa to make it 1-0.
It was a goal which opened up the game somewhat, giving the hosts the confidence to double their lead soon after the half time interval, as Christian Pulisic linked up with Mount before slotting home coolly.
The game petered out from that point onwards, with a standing ovation from the home crowd for Diego Costa being the most notable moment until the 90th minute of the game, when Armando Broja scored a third to wrap things up.
His first Chelsea goal put the gloss on a thoroughly deserved victory, while Wolves were left to lick their wounds after their fifth loss from their opening nine games, leaving them stuck in the relegation zone.
Potter works his magic with team selection
When the line-ups for this game were announced, it is fair to say that there were quite a few questioning the necessity of no fewer than seven changes from Chelsea’s midweek game, even if there was an arguably bigger game to come on Tuesday at the San Siro.
There were some unnerved too over the reverting to a back four, with the constant tinkering in systems and formations leading some to ask whether too much chopping and changing could prove a problem for the Blues.
As it was though, fans need not have worried, because Graham Potter proved, as he did on many occasions while in charge at Brighton, that he is able to alter his teams at the drop of a hat and still produce results too.
A gamble though it may have been to leave senior players such as Reece James, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Raheem Sterling on the bench - not to mention Thiago Silva being out of the squad altogether - it proved a fruitful one.
By resting those aforementioned players, as well as many others, it means that in this busy fixture period leading up to the World Cup, Potter can feel safe in the knowledge that all members of his team are capable of putting in strong performances when called upon.
Admittedly, the opposition quality was hardly the highest they will ever encounter, but being able to pick up three points in games such as these, even without the strongest possible starting eleven on the pitch, could prove a huge boost.
Wolves still lacking in ideas
Whilst the plaudits will rightly go to the home side, their task was made significantly easier by the lack of ambition on the part of their opponents in west London on this sunny Saturday afternoon.
Still without a manager after they sacked previous boss Bruno Lage, who had left them languishing near the bottom of the table, the task of leading the team out was left to the duo of Steve Davis and James Collins.
It would have been unfair to expect any sort of revolutionary change in tactics, with the squad quite evidently in a state of flux as the transition period between coaches drags on far longer than the club would have surely hoped.
Even so, the sheer lack of quality amongst virtually all of the squad is a huge concern, as the visitors barely ever threatened Kepa Arrizabalaga’s net for the entirety of the 90 minutes, instead sitting deep for the majority of that time.
The moments of excitement in an attacking sense were few and far between as far as the away fans were concerned, as they watched their team concede their 12th goal in nine games.
By the time they line up against Nottingham Forest at Molineux next weekend a new manager will likely have been appointed, but whoever comes into the role will have a tough task on their hands getting this team going, with the current confidence levels well and truly shot.
Academy boys involved again for the Blues
Many of the headlines from Chelsea’s European victory a few days ago centred around the number of Cobham graduates on the pitch at one time in such a high-calibre game, with up to seven all together at one point.
This match might not have been of quite the same status, but it still saw many youngsters brought up as Blues featuring, and indeed contributing to the victory, as Trevoh Chalobah, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Conor Gallagher and Mason Mount all started the game.
The latter picked up an assist for Havertz’s goal with a sublime cross, Gallagher impressed once more with his seemingly never-ending energy to press the opposition, Loftus-Cheek was a stalwart in midfield and Chalobah helped the Blues keep only their second domestic clean sheet of the season.
That was not the last of the stories though, with two further substitutes being introduced in the form of Reece James and Armando Broja, also both at Chelsea for much of their youth careers, and it was an afternoon to remember for Broja.
Having been played in by Mateo Kovacic, the Albanian striker cut inside and finished with aplomb for his first ever Chelsea goal, before going off to celebrate in front of the Stamford Bridge faithful in the Shed End.
It was a moment which capped off yet another successful outing as far as the Blues’ youth academy is concerned, as they continued to prove just why their development system is considered one of the best not just in the country, but in the world.
Diego Costa yet to make an impact
If you would have told Wolves fans when Diego Costa signed a few weeks ago that he would be getting a standing ovation after being substituted off in his first start for the club, they would no doubt have been pretty delighted.
What they probably would not have imagined, however, is that the standing ovation would be coming primarily from the opposition supporters, as it was today when he was lauded by Chelsea fans in recognition of his team at the club a few years ago.
That they felt comfortable enough to chant in support of an opposition striker, while evidence of his lasting popularity, is also reflective of his perceived lack of threat as far as the hosts were concerned.
Having only played 32 minutes a week ago in Wolves’ loss to West Ham United, he was hardly likely to be fully immersed back into the English top flight, but those hoping that he would quickly readapt will be disappointed.
Perhaps expectations ought to be tempered for the man who turned 34 the day before this encounter, especially given the fact he has not been playing much football over the course of the last couple of years.
Regardless, the striker’s struggles are an apt metaphor for how his team’s campaign has gone thus far: hoping to get back to the form of seasons gone by, but ultimately falling below expectations.