Penalty Drama
As you must be fully aware, Chelsea were defeated by Arsenal in the Community Shield on Sunday. A Victor Moses goal was cancelled out by a Sead Kolasinac equaliser, and the game went to penalties. Gary Cahill scored from the spot, but Thibaut Courtois and Alvaro Morata missed theirs. Arsenal dispatched all four of their penalties beat Chelsea at Wembley for the second time this year.
Small Squad Problems
A major talking point before and after Sunday’s affair was the differing sizes of squads on offer. The match program showed the vast difference, with Arsenal including 41 players compared to Chelsea’s 24. Antonio Conte commented after the game that additions must be made to his squad. Newly appointed captain Gary Cahill later commented, agreeing with the sentiments of his manager, stressing that injuries could ruin the Blues’ title defence.
Batshuayi laughs…or does he?
In the aftermath of Chelsea’s penalty defeat to Arsenal, a video emerged on social media of Michy Batshuayi appearing to laugh while new summer signing Alvaro Morata looks on. The Belgian striker has since taken to Twitter to defend himself, claiming that he wasn’t laughing at either penalty.
Additions incoming
Recent reports have suggested that the Chelsea board plan to ease Conte’s fears, by signing at least three new players before the end of the window. Leicester midfielder Danny Drinkwater has been mooted as a potential target, as well as Everton’s Ross Barkley and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain of Arsenal, as Chelsea look to increase their home-grown contingent. The Blues have also been linked with Southampton centre-back Virgil Van Dijk, who submitted a transfer request on Monday. One player who doesn’t seem likely to be heading to Stamford Bridge is Alex Sandro, after Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri saying Chelsea have no chance of signing the Brazilian.
Loads of Loans
It’s widely known that Chelsea have a large number of players out on loan, with current figure at 25, but will almost definitely increase before the window slams shut. Ola Aina and Michael Hector made their Hull debuts, coming up against John Terry’s Aston Villa side in a 1-1 draw. Elsewhere in the Championship, Tomas Kalas started in Fulham’s draw with Norwich, Ike Ugbo failed to find the back of the net in Barnsley’s loss to Bristol City, and Jamal Blackman kept a clean sheet for Sheffield United in their 1-0 win at home to Brentford. Elsewhere, Jay Dasilva, Bradley Collins, Nathan Baxter, Jared Thompson, Fankaty Dabo, Charlie Colkett, Marco van Ginkel, Mario Pasalic, and Danilo Pantic all played for their respective clubs this weekend.