Southampton won against the Blues by a margin of 2-0. It was a brilliant win for the Saints at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day. Southampton went to the 14th position in the League table with 21 points from 19 matches so far. On the other hand, Chelsea stayed at the 4th position with 32 points in the same number of matches.
The Story Of The Game That Chelsea Lost To Southampton
Chelsea missed Mateo Kovacic in the midfield area because of the suspension. The manager of the Blues, Frank Lampard used the same formation of 3-4-3 against Southampton too. However, it did not work out this time. Callum Hudson-Odoi and Emerson Palmieri came back in the starting lineup of the Blues. On the other hand, Danny Ings was benched against Chelsea. Southampton was playing with their usual 4-4-2 formation.
Ryan Bertrand was booked at the 30th minute for time-wasting. Michael Obafemi scored the first goal at the 31st minute of the match. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg provided the ball towards Michael Obafemi during the goal. The first half ended with a scoreline of 1-0 in favour of the Blues.
The manager of the Blues, Frank Lampard brought in Mason Mount in place of Kurt Zouma. Jorginho was shown a yellow card at the 58th minute. N’Golo Kante was booked two minutes later. Fikayo Tomori was booked at the 62nd minute because of an argument. Christian Pulisic came in place of Callum Hudson Odoi at the 67th minute of the match. On the other hand, Danny Ings came in place of Michael Obafemi at the 69th minute.
Who Were The Best Players Of The Game Between Southampton And Chelsea?
Nathan Redmond scored the second goal of the match at the 73rd minute of match. Che Adams was subbed out at the 80th minute and Boufal came in place of him. Pedro was subbed in place of Willian at the 84th minute of the match. Oriol Romeu came in place of Stuart Armstrong at the 86th minute of the match. Boufal was shown a yellow card at the 94th minute of the match. The match finished with a scoreline of 2-0 in the favour of The Saints.
Chelsea was not able to create enough opportunities in this match. Tammy Abraham was ineffective as he did not get enough supply from the other players. It is proved that Mateo Kovacic is essential for the Blues in this system. He will be back against Arsenal on Sunday. So, Chelsea might come back stronger in the next match. The defensive organization of the Blues is still looking very much shaky. The combination has not been built uprightly between Fikayo Tomori and Kurt Zouma.
Southampton is currently playing well under their new manager. They have been victorious against Aston Villa in the previous match. Chelsea never looked the better side in the field against Southampton and that might be enough for Frank Lampard to go back to the blackboard again. Chelsea is not looking at a safe position now at the fourth place. The Blues will be in a bad position if they lose against the Gunners on Sunday. Hopefully, things will be better for the Blues after the winter transfer window.