A Brilliant Opener Away!
We're normally slow starters, but today we looked assured & settled after a steady professional start. Starting with Lewis, Savinho & Doku without Rodri away at Chelsea was risky, but who am I to argue with Pep's selection? He sees the players every day in training, & after Savio & Doku decided to swap sides, our season really took off.
The build-up & control from Erling for the opener was sublime! Doku glided past two midfielders & passed to Bernardo who touched the ball on to the Viking. Haaland shrugged off two defenders to shield the ball, before despatching a deft reverse chip over the keeper for his first of the season.
This settled us down & we took control of the game & looked comfortable, albeit Chelsea were trying to press forward & apply pressure on our midfield & defence. Doku & Savinho were wreaking havoc, & Bernardo was his usual controlling effervescent self.
Chelsea had stepped up the pressure after the goal & had several weak penalty calls ruled out & a goal chalked off for a marginal off-side. However, we kept them at bay & deservedly went in 0-1 up at half-time.
Chelsea came at us after the break, but we played within our comfort zone, to snuff out their attacks & hit them on the counter. Lewis was absolutely brilliant & today's performance has put to bed the argument over a future Walker replacement. It's Little Lewis all the way!
We needed the cushion of a second goal after a few hair-raising moments in defence, but cometh the hour, cometh my MoTM by a country mile!
Kovacic was absolutely pristine today & this was by far his best performance in a City shirt imo. He controlled the game from midfield with some tough, well-timed tackling, but his dominant USP was his ability to glide past Chelsea's midfield at will, with killer ball after killer ball setting up an avalanche of attacks.
Mateo's 80th minute goal typified his superb display. Chelsea played a loose clearance out of defence, which came back to us with a ball played to the Croatian. Surrounded by two Chelsea midfielders, he controlled the ball, accelerated past the two players, shaped to pass, but blasted a wicked shot through the flailing hands of their keeper!
Killer Kovacic!
What a fuckin relief that deserved second was! We then went into game management mode & Chelsea were out of ideas & soon ran out of steam & ambition as we saw the game safely over the line.
I was gutted we lost Bobb just before the season, but with Savinho on the right, Doku on the left & Phil, Bernardo & Grealish who can play wide too, we looked comfortably dangerous today. It was a performance of defending Champions!
I prefer us playing a 4-1-4-1 which we've struggled to do without Rodri at the base & the industry of Bernardo in an attacking central midfield role. Bernardo providing the energy through the centre, afforded us the control we exuded. Bernie was everywhere he was needed today. Super Kev pulled the strings the whole match & conducted the play like the seasoned maestro he is.
I thought Akanji looked a bit edgy in the first half, but settled down to end the game well, & despite a few errant passes, this was the best game Dias has had in a while.
It's a solid start to another difficult, fixture packed season. With Kovacic's CDM showing today, the stellar performance of Lewis & the other solid showings by all involved & the strength of our bench, hopefully we'll push on to have a decent season on all four fronts.
Roll on Ipswich at home!
