DaRick

Ultimately a very solid win. 1) Hazard was quality as ever, but he didn't so much dominate the entire game as stamp his mark at key moments - firstly with the goal and then with the assist to Morata. 2) It was great to see Barkley finally make a definitive impact on a game as opposed to merely looking promising without really stamping his authority on proceedings. His through ball to Hazard after dispossessing the Southampton player was a nice display of vision which I honestly don't remember him displaying either at this club or even very much at Everton, His forward run for his goal was something I do recall seeing at Everton at times and it was great to see him pull off something like that here. 3) For somebody who is so big and bulky, Giroud displays some surprising agility and technical prowess at times. Following on from his ridiculous scorpion kick goal at Arsenal, he rolled out an effective scissor kick here to make the most of a Willian corner. It would be nice to see him score, but he clearly has value beyond any goals he might score, in terms of holding the ball up and playing his teammates in. 4) Southampton got a few chances on the counter-attack, but luckily were either denied by Kepa or poor finishing. In general though they were often second best, either showing only flashes of ability (Redmond/Lemina) or making defensive errors (Hoedt, who by now probably shouldn't be starting). 5) It was good to see Morata reminding us of his super-sub days at Real Madrid/Juventus. I think that is probably the best way to use him, especially if we keep encountering deep-lying defences. We simply get Giroud to wear down two centre-backs for 60-65 minutes like a battering ram and then bring Morata on against tired legs so he can utilise his pace more effectively. 6) The refereeing was sub-standard - Southampton were probably fortunate to end the match with 11 men and we should have had at least one penalty IMO. Didn't matter in the end though. 7) Since the West Ham game, Kepa has definitely proven his worth as a shot-stopper. He may not be Courtois in that department, but on this evidence he isn't far off. Like Courtois he can also retain concentration for the entire game and make a spectacular save when not much appears to be happening.

Alvaro recreating his super-sub days in Juventus/Madrid.

...and that's the goal threat!

On that note, would not be opposed to bringing on Pedro/Morata in the second half, particularly if Southampton push up in search of an equaliser.

Clever quick dispossession and through ball by Barkley for Hazard's goal and at least one penalty could have been given. Maybe bring on Kovacic at around the 70 minute mark to retain possession if necessary?

Must be starting Barkley because Kovacic played for longer against Videoton. His greater goal threat could be useful as well. Why is Willian starting instead of Pedro? Are there still issues RE Pedro's fitness?

Arsenal are relying on individual brilliance from their attacking quartet (Aubameyang, Lacazette, Ozil, Mkhitaryan) rather than any sort of cohesive shape as a side. Hence, they are still vulnerable defensively - Monreal giving the ball away prior to Schurrle's goal was amateurish for example.

Can't go past JT & Carvalho for smashing the defensive record in 2004/05 (with 15 goals conceded!) and generally being miserly since.

This passage stands out: "Speaking about Chelsea’s approach at his unveiling, Higuain explained: ‘I have huge respect for Sarri, but he was the only one who wanted me at Chelsea. ‘Here at Milan everyone wanted me. The motivation and conviction they showed at Milan was fundamental.’"

Interesting - I got the distinct impression that he preferred to go to Milan because he 'felt more wanted', or something like that.

Kepa - made a few nifty saves and kept a clean sheet. From what I saw of the highlights, nobody else really stood out truth be told. I suppose RLC did help keep possession quite well and made some smart runs and Morata did score a goal to make up for a shocking miss.

I worry about mid-table strikers like Piatek because the skillset required to succeed at mid-table clubs is quite different from that required to succeed at the very top. At mid-table clubs you can get away with having a sub-par or average first touch because defences are more likely to leave space in behind for strikers with sufficient pace (ala Lukaku) or predatory instincts (ala Belotti/Vardy) to run into. However, defences often drop deeper against the very top sides, so you would really want your striker to possess a good first touch alongside either top-class movement to draw defenders out of position or a serious aerial presence (Drogba at his best displayed both features). From what I've seen of Piatek, his finishing is impressive - he often hits the corner. His movement looks good and he's reasonably threatening in the air, but I'm not sure about his touch yet.

He won't be f**ked off until top 4 is mathematically out of reach. It's just a suffer test until then. Given Man U's handling of Moyes (who had a far lesser reputation), I'm minded to agree. Mind, Mourinho's start to this season has been even worse.

LOL BATE got BATE'red. I'm rooting for them to keep him for as long as possible.

Seems like a fairly routine, ho-hum win. From the highlights though, while Chelsea were too wasteful with their shooting, Vidi did work hard in midfield and defence to minimise our legitimate scoring opportunities and even had a few shots on target themselves.

From memory, he actually started off quite well in his first few games for Chelsea. I'd ultimately be hard-pressed to find someone who squandered his talent quite so utterly. With a little more discipline and focus he could possibly have made it here, but he instead had to settle for being a star at second-tier clubs like Parma and Fiorentina.

Our next game after Southampton is against a fractious, underperforming Man U side. However, Jose will definitely try to park the bus at the Bridge after seeing our display versus Liverpool and watching West Ham succeed in doing it.

Interesting sidenotes about some of Videoton's players - these players were known to me previously and some here might recognise them: Roland Juhasz: Formerely played for Anderlecht - nearing the end of his career - stereotypically strong, slow, aerially-accomplished CB at this stage of his career. @Krc-fan might have seen him play for Anderlecht? Szabolcs Huszti: Played in the Bundesliga and for Zenit - also nearing the end of his career - has reconverted from a winger to a CM/AM playmaker presumably because of his loss of pace - had good passing, good free kicks and good technique in his prime, traits you don't expect to lose as you grow older (see Pirlo for proof). No idea if he'll play. Georgi Milanov: Played for CSKA Moscow - Attacking midfielder who is just OK at everything. Stefan Scepovic: Not quite good enough to play in La Liga, but too good for the Segunda Division. He also played for Celtic. @erskblue I know you follow Rangers but do you recall him ever playing? Going by how slow Juhasz must be these days (not to mention flying to Stamford Bridge), I would expect a deep bus-parking operation, which encourages us to start Giroud. We can sub Morata in to take advantage of tired legs. The rest of the lineup is a mystery. I'd go with something like this: Caballero Zappacosta - Christensen - Cahill - Emerson Kante - Fabregas - Barkley Moses/Pedro - Giroud - CHO Caballero's distributional skills were better than I expected against Liverpool. They're not as good as Kepa's, but I don't expect pacy attackers (which Videoton lack) to put him under any real pressure either. The back four should do fine against an opposition that doesn't appear to be particularly pacey. I have no problem with the middle 3. One or more may have to be subbed though. I am doubtful about Pedro's fitness and we shouldn't need him, but he may get in 20 minutes if the game looks tight. I have decided to give CHO a start - if he's electric, he gets most of the game, but otherwise sub him off in the 2nd half for Willian, who does well against tired, slow legs. Ampadu is a curious case. He has the ball-playing ability to replace Christensen at the base of the defence but he could also replace Fabregas as a deep-lying playmaker, having done so against Wales. I expect Sarri to play a very different lineup given his desire to win the group ASAP but anyway...in Sarri we trust!

I hope to hell that Pedro is fit. With him, I think we have enough firepower to knock over smaller sides. Without him, I'm far less confident.

All of this talk about selling Kante because he doesn't score enough goals is the very definition of penny wise and pound foolish. You would lose one of the world's premier ball-winning midfielders in doing so. His replacement might score a few more goals, but we would be significantly more vulnerable defensively by virtue of Kante's absence and so those few goals would almost certainly be cancelled out anyway. How many midfielders can intercept and tackle like Kante can over as many matches? I can't think of any. If we want more goals, we really need a more prolific RW/CF combination to support an ageing Pedro and supplant an ineffective Morata.

At 2:16. Was this what you were thinking of? (He hasn't this season from memory.)

Used before, but this time appropriately...

I'd be more worried about Southampton than Videoton, even if they are underperforming. Also they changed their name to MOL Vidi for sponsorship reasons. I'd be pretty pissed off if (say) Chelsea was renamed Mobil Chels so I have some sympathy with any fans angry at the name change.

Not RedCafe is it? I was reading that forum today and words were said to that effect.

Superficially, Hazard stands out, as did little Rudiger for his tackling. Looking more closely at the highlights though, I have to say that Luiz didn't put a foot wrong either in attack or defence - none of his infamous concentration lapses today. Willian was also much better, Kante was almost flawless (you can nitpick about him marking Sturridge more closely for the goal), Kepa also made a big save and distributed as calmly as ever while Kovacic's through ball to Hazard was as impressive as his ability to help retain possession more generally.