A Chelsea loss to Arsenal in a Premier League match on Sunday, September 6, came as a setback to the Blues. Arsenal came from behind to win the match 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium and register their third consecutive victory in the Premier League. The Chelsea loss was their first of the season, but had Pedro Neto not hit the post, Xabi Alonso’s men probably would have left the pitch with a point. Morgan Rogers gave them the lead, but the Gunners bounced back with strikes from Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz.
Chelsea Loss To Arsenal: Two Major Concerns For Royal Blues
#1. A Porous Defence
Chelsea have conceded seven goals in three matches so far. That is by no means an advertisement for their defence. The fact that Emi Martinez conceded the first goal from a shot from outside the box at his near post must have increased Martinez’s worries.
The Blues started with a back-three once again, but the way their defence allowed a pass from Christos Tzolis across the field to breach their line and reach Martin Odegaard was an absolute disgrace. What was even more worrying was that neither of the two defensive midfielders, Reece James and Romeo Lavia, was in place to block the pass and thus prevent it from reaching Odegaard inside the Chelsea penalty box. Chelsea were sorely missing Moises Caicedo in the midfield, as the Ecuadorian’s ability to shield the defence would have come in handy and prevented the Chelsea loss.
The fact that Neto played as a right wing-back increased Chelsea’s worries. Neto is not a specialist defender, and it showed in his struggles against Tzolis in the Chelsea loss to Arsenal on Sunday.
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#2. Lack of Width In Attack
Playing with a 3-4-2-1 formation, Chelsea relied a great deal on their wing-backs to provide width to their attack. Neto made several overlapping runs, but Jorrel Hato, the left wing-back, was busy dealing with the triumvirate of Kai Havertz, Odegaard and Bukayo Saka through the inside-right channel. As a result, he was not able to make much contribution offensively, and it contributed to the Chelsea loss.
Both Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer operated in the central areas more often. As a result, the Arsenal defence managed to stay narrow and deal with Chelsea’s attacks by crowding the penalty box. This is something that Alonso will have to work on. Maybe he should start with Marco Palestra, a specialist right wing-back, as soon as the Italian is fit. Neto can then play as the left wing-back, which should allow him to play crosses with his left foot more often. This is a change Alonso will have to make, as neither Hato nor Pep Chavarria seems to be good enough to make a difference as the left wing-back.
The season has just begun, but Alonso cannot afford to be late in making the changes to his playing XI. The team will undoubtedly be stronger with the return of Palestra and Caicedo, but it remains to be seen whether the West Londoners are able to improve their performance in the upcoming matches after the Chelsea loss to Arsenal.
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