Back In the Groove
Last week, the Blues suffered consecutive home losses, but all that was forgotten about following a 6-0 obliteration of Southampton on the road. Tuchel talked about how vital the match against the Saints was heading into the second leg against Real Madrid. Chelsea tore the Southampton defense to shreds, capitalizing on every single mistake the Saints made from the first whistle to the last. Not only was scoring goals important, but preventing them was as salient given that the Blues' defense had let in seven goals in the previous two contests. It was Chelsea's first clean sheet in the Premier League since mid-March against Newcastle, and the Blues venture off to Madrid with loads of momentum and confidence for an attempt at a come-from-behind victory.
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After the trashing of the Saints, Tuchel was delighted, stating, "Straight away we looked focused and determined to turn things around. We were hungry in challenges and we were always dangerous. We created a lot of chances to decide the match very early...We wanted to play with the same attitude but we have a lot of matches in the legs so we managed the game after that. It is easier when you lead than when you are down but it was a good mentality."
After about a week of feeling like it could only get worse for the Blues, Tuchel and Chelsea showed immense resilience heading into an end-of-the-season run that could finish with some silverware. The backline has been disorganized, full of mistakes, and uncharacteristic following the international break, but a much-needed clean sheet is exactly what they needed with Benzema on the schedule for a mid-week rematch. It was the largest margin of victory for the Blues against the Saints out of 111 meetings in their history. Going into a match against a quality defense that shut Chelsea out last week, and seeing the ball hit the back of the net does nothing but heighten the morale around the team.
Watching Tino Werner carve through the Saints' backline like a Thanksgiving turkey was an incredible surprise for someone who has been the definition of out of form since coming to West London. The German international hit both posts and the crossbar on Saturday afternoon, and realistically could have put in five or maybe six goals if he was in prolific goal-scoring form. Despite some missed chances, Werner reminded the Chelsea faithful why the club signed him in the first place.
He was aggressive, confident, and determined as he put together a world-class performance in a must-win situation for the Blues. His time in West London has been filled with bad luck, and many missed opportunities that led critics to believe that he was just not built for success in the Premier League. The stereotype about Werner pauses for a few days as he shows flashes of his time at RB Leipzig. Werner is a player that fans from any team root for. His relentlessness, and never give up mentality is something an everyday person should adopt in their day-to-day lives.
Lukaku was out due to some pain in his Achilles, but he is expected to travel to the Spanish capital for the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinal. As the Belgian looks like another experiment gone wrong, the Blues seem to have found themselves a striker the summer before in Kai Havertz. The German was calm, cool, and collected as usual on Saturday, netting his fourth goal in the last eight games for the Blues. Havertz has scored some of the most important goals of the season for Chelsea including a game-winner against Newcastle, and two braces against Burnley following a frustrating first-half outing at Turf Moor.
It was a rejuvenating performance by Chelsea after multiple dreading home matches. With consecutive losses by Arsenal, the Blues now lead Tottenham by five points but have a game in hand over their London rivals. Anything but a win at St. Mary's over the weekend would have been a catastrophe for the club. Finishing in the top-four of the Premier League is a must, and after 46 minutes of embarrassing football during the mid-week last week, Chelsea needed a rebound.
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Solidifying its spot in the Champions League for next season, and gaining a whole lot of momentum before the trip to Madrid on Tuesday is the best the Blues could have asked for. Tuchel once again shows that the world must trust him despite some shaky outings for his defense. The off-the-field situation is still up in the air, but as far as on the field, it looks like Chelsea is going to be just fine. In terms of results, this win only counts for three points, but in the long term, the significance may count for far more than what in reality it is.
