Chelsea have notched a 5th blank sheet in a row with Wednesday evening’s scoreless draw at Brentford, and that makes it just about 9 hours (533 mins to be actual) since we final conceded a objective. But these days’s blank sheet owed as a lot to success as to high quality goalkeeping — and it unquestionably didn’t owe a lot to qualify protecting, in spite of Trevoh Chalobah’s highest efforts.
Still, a blank sheet is a blank sheet any which means you glance at it, and the one unlucky section is that we weren’t ready to benefit from that success at the opposite finish, with a couple of high quality possibilities going begging both by means of deficient decision-making or some determined last-ditch protecting: Brentford blocked six (6!) photographs, for instance, some slightly spectacularly, whilst each goalkeepers made 5 saves.
With but extra rotation and but extra wing-back permutations, it’s in all probability proper to take the purpose as a good from Brentford, who stung us for a 4-1 loss final time we met as we may recall.
“I believed over the process the sport, some extent was once honest. They had possibilities, and we had possibilities. We driven and driven at the top. Probably, much more likely at the top to attain, however at the similar time, over the process the sport, some extent was once about proper.
“They make it very tricky for you to regulate. They do what they do in reality neatly. Use the entrance two, set items, lengthy throws, balls into the field, and lengthy balls that make it risky. I’ve complete appreciate for them, and the way they do this, they do it in reality neatly. Not simple.
“It’s another clean sheet for us. The positives are a clean sheet and a point. That’s four points from two away matches which is positive. When we did control it, we did it quite well, but it’s a point, and we have to move on.”
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24125035/1434801708.jpg)
Photo via Chloe Knott – Danehouse/Getty Images
One detrimental, rather than the loss of precision in the general 3rd, was once Conor Gallagher’s early substitution, which at the time was once assumed to be because of harm, although no harm was once noticed. As it seems, Gallagher was once merely no longer feeling neatly, which unquestionably mirrored in his play as neatly throughout the ones quarter-hour that he was once at the pitch.
“I haven’t spoken to the doctor, but he just felt ill. He felt like he was going to be sick. You could probably see that in his first 15 minutes, he wasn’t quite himself, so hopefully, it’s just a 24-hour thing, and he will be okay. Obviously, that probably affected him and us a little bit, but hopefully, he recovers quickly.”
-Graham Potter; supply: Football.London
With 3 gamers out long-term, Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell rested because of hamstring and knee loading issues, respectively, and maximum everybody else scraping for health, with a bit of luck Gallagher’s sickness is certainly quick (and non-contagious).
Time to leisure up for Sunday’s huge showdown with Manchester United, who beat Spurs this night to with reference to inside only a level in the back of us in 5th.