Last season, Chelsea were let down by their central defenders time after time.
So many great performances were ruined by calamities at the back, and so many bad games were made worse by sloppy mistakes.
This season has started on a much brighter note. While they did concede a goal (mainly thanks to Kepa’s goalkeeping), Kurt Zouma and Andreas Christensen played well against Brighton.
Particularly notable was their passing. According to FBRef, Zouma completed 20 of his 21 long passes, and Christensen 19 of his 20.
That made them the most efficient long passers in the team, regularly playing accurate balls out to the flanks for their full backs to collect.
Further forward, the team had issues, but their solid defending and work with the ball gave Frank Lampard’s team a platform to play off. The question now will be how long they both keep their places, with Thiago Silva beginning his training at Cobham today.
