A couple of days after the first win under the Rafa Benitez era, the club has now ended the eight match sequence without a league victory with the 3-1 score against Sunderland. It is a welcome result in many ways, as Fernando Torres finally managed to find the back of the net in the league since the match against Norwich.
Even though the focus will be on Torres finally returning to scoring ways, the work done by the entire team should not be overlooked. They seemed to help Torres in every way, and he responded well by scoring two goals. The team had excellent possession and control of the match, while also creating chances as well.
The movement of Torres and the three players behind him was extremely crucial, while it is also helped by the occasional burst from Ramires from his defensive midfield position. The goals came at the right time for Chelsea. The penalty by Torres just before half-time helped keep up the momentum in the second half, while Mata scoring a few minutes after the break helped the players settle.
Even though Petr Cech made a few crucial saves, he was guilty of allowing a shot from Adam Johnson go straight past him when he could have easily stopped it. As a result, Chelsea are without a clean sheet in their last three matches. However, it will not be the focus for the moment because it seems as if – finally – Torres seems to be coming back to his best.
Chelsea manager Rafa Benitez said,
“I said before that if the team play well and create chances he will score goals. It’s fair to say that we are watching a Torres with more confidence and belief.
I was analysing his movements and adjusting a few things. It’s a question of confidence and differences in movements.
It’s always important to win. We need to show what we’d been doing in training on the pitch, and if we do, the confidence of the team will be fantastic.
We know we have dynamic players up front, but we need to also be strong and keep the balance in defence.”
Team line-ups:
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Cech, Ivanovic, Cahill, Luiz, Cole, Ramires, Romeu (Oscar 19), Moses (Bertrand 60), Mata, Hazard (Lampard 78), Torres
Scorers: Torres 10, 45, Mata 48
Sunderland (4-2-3-1): Mignolet, Bardsley (Colback 67), O’Shea, Cuellar, Rose, Larsson (Saha 80), Gardner, Johnson, Sessegnon, McClean, Wickham
Scorer: Johnson 66
