Chelsea vs Sheffield United was shaped up to be a particularly challenging task for the Blues given their recent head-to-head form. However, Frank Lampard’s men sealed revenge against the Blades via a 4-1 victory and enter the International break in a strong position. A few of the SW6Daily writers share their reactions on the match, including Hakim Ziyech’s wonderful performance.
Introduction
Frank Lampard’s mighty Blues passed a significant test in coming back from 1-0 down after a poor opening spell against the Blades. Chelsea was able to maintain their composure and work their way back into the contest to notch 2 goals before half-time, courtesy of Tammy Abraham and Ben Chilwell. In the second half, the Blues continued to search for openings and finally put the sword through the Blades in the quarter of an hour to finally beat Chris Wilder’s side 4-1 and obtain sweet redemption (see Chelsea vs Sheffield United match report).
Dan Hill (@idanknow05)
It’s honestly difficult to find the right adjective to describe the feeling after that match. But that’s the best I have felt and the happiest I have been watching Chelsea since 2016/17. The attacking verve, the combinations on show, the relentless will to win and the defensive fortitude all filled me with immense joy, confidence, and positivity.
When the McGoldrick goal went in, there was a heavy sense of deja vu of the “not this again” variety as the Blades started brightly and their number 17 channeled his inner Brazilian Ronaldo to score only his fourth Premier League goal, three of which came against Chelsea. But there was no sense of panic, unlike in this fixture last season. The attack stuck to their guns and placed their opponents under continuous, suffocating pressure. And who was at the forefront? None other than Hakim Ziyech. Although a different kind of player, I got a similar feeling with the Moroccan as I did watch Eden Hazard. The skill, the movement, and, most importantly, the delivery into the final third had me drooling. The only downside was that he didn’t get a goal, which he deserved! What a wonderful player he is and one I am so excited to watch going forward.
From a team perspective, countless players were wonderful. Mendy was calm and undeterred by his first League concession, James was defensively resolute and always an attacking outlet, Zouma was dominant, Silva was measured and it was awesome to see him get his goal, and Chilwell was a brilliant outlet on defense and attack. The more Mason Mount plays in a midfield three, the more you see why Lampard believes in him. He is so, so good there. Kanté had a great game and is returning to his best form. I thought Kovacic moved the ball well and was always progressive. Up top, Tammy Abraham was a constant threat. I’m glad he got his goal. His hold up play, linking with other players, and his positional awareness are improving. And then there’s Timo Werner. What more can you say about him? He has played a relentless number of games and yet, at the end of a game his side is winning 3-1, he is alive and electric to a defensive lapse. He’ll be annoyed with himself that he didn’t score from Ziyech’s through ball but he showed his world-class ability with how he took his goal. World-class players all over the pitch and a wonderful attacking team led by a club legend who we all adore, what more could you want? This is what football dreams are made of!
Rey (@Rey_Blues30)
Coming into this game, I was worried that we’ll finally break our clean sheet record. In the 9th minutethat came true as Chelsea failed to properly defend a corner and let Sheffield United score from a direct set of passes into our box. Again, it was the one and only David McGoldrick who put on his scoring boots to haunt the Blues and pull off an impressive heel flick to beat Mendy in goal. I felt that the intensity the Blades brought in the first few minutes caught Chelsea off guard and one of the reasons why we looked shaky for a while.
I was pleased to see our reaction and ability to create openings against the back five of Sheffield United. Mason Mount and Mateo Kovačić performed accordingly in their midfield roles just ahead of Kanté, thereby proving why this is our preferred setup going forward, at least for now.
Hakim Ziyech’s initial passes were awry as he was trying to find the runs of our players who were not on the same wavelength. However, once Ziyech found his range and once his sharpness came into full effect, it was nothing but eye candy for us fans. His sublime balls were outstanding and he rightfully deserved his Man-of-the-match reward. Now to hope for no injuries in International break!
RJ (@RJ_Goodthings)
Chelsea vs Sheffield United was interesting for me in a lot of aspects. Firstly, I was keen to see how we would approach the game without one of our German stars Kai Havertz. Secondly, after conceding early, I was very eager to observe how we would respond (given we hadn’t been breached in a while). Thirdly, after giving ourselves a slender lead at half-time, I was fascinated to watch how we would approach the second half.
As it turned out, I was satisfied on all fronts. Naturally we are a stronger team with Havertz in the side but I was pleasantly surprised to see how we played the game, albeit the opening stages in which we were on the back foot and conceded from a lapse in concentration (in fairness it was a fine finish).
Individually speaking, there were a lot of stars on show for the mighty Blues. The defence looked assured, including positively reacting after their shaky start, the midfield moved the ball around sharply and with purpose, the front and wide men created havoc, it was just a pleasure to watch. While I was pleased for all of the goalscorers, it was none other than our Moroccan Magician Hakim Ziyech who once again stole the show. With his feet acting as his wand, Chelsea fans are salivating at what further magic he can produce!
This team is starting to shows signs of unshakeable confidence and playing with much-needed character. These are core ingredients should they harbour ambitions of achieving something great this season.
Small steps for now, but after another convincing display, it’s great progress.
Written By: Rey, Dan and RJ
Edited By: Ross-John (RJ) Bonaccorsi (@RJ_Goodthings)