Chelsea Produce A Counter-Attacking Masterclass Away Against Schalke

Schalke 0-3 Chelsea

Chelsea rounded off a good evening in Germany with an impressive 3-0 away victory that was more efficient than it was spectacular. Two wins from two mean that Chelsea are back on course for qualification, after an opening day defeat to FC Basel. Basel’s draw with Steaua means that Chelsea go to the top of their group.

Key Stats:

The stats some up what was a very efficient away performance from Chelsea who scored early then sat back (reflected by the superior possession for the home side Schalke). Chelsea soaked up the pressure and looked to hit the German’s on the break, something they did incredibly well on two separate occasions in the second half to win 3-0.

Performance Score

The Performance Score shows that Chelsea were on top from the start. Having taken the lead so early on we’d expect Chelsea to better Schalke here. Although prior to half-time Schalke had a flurry of chances, leading to some top class saves from Petr Cech, which coincided with a narrowing of the gap between the two scores.

The second-half showed a divergence in Performance Scores after a second goal for Chelsea and widened it further when Chelsea scored their third through Eden Hazard late on.

Man of the Match

Unsurprisingly Fernando Torres was the Man of the Match in this tie, having scored the opener and crucially killing the game off with his second goal. Torres clinically scored two goals for Chelsea, continuing on from his good European form last year. Although his pass accuracy was awful (56% completion), he was an isolated figure up front at times and ran the line well. His hard work off the ball was also evident as he completed three tackles and made three defensive actions. Torres definitely went a long way to staking a claim for a start against Manchester City.

Key Observations

It was odd that Ryan Bertrand wasn’t started in this game, despite being the natural understudy to Ashley Cole. Perhaps it is possible that Jose Mourinho doesn’t fully trust the young English full-back. As such Cesar Azpilicueta was drafted in at left-back, not his natural position. The Spaniard did well though winning 3 of his 4 tackles, four clearances and won 100% of his aerial duels in a very competent full-back performance.

César Azpilicueta Duels v Schalke

Chelsea’s result against Schalke, was a rather typical Jose Mourinho performance. The Blues were more than happy to not have the ball and were incredibly quick to pounce in transition phases, with mobile players such as Oscar and Eden Hazard.

Chelsea’s Second Goal v Schalke