Chelsea were on the wrong end of a 3-1 scoreline against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday night. As always, there were plenty of positives and negatives to take from the contest.
The Blues came up short this week during their trip to Germany to face Bayern in the group phase of the Champions League. For the first time this season, Enzo Maresca’s team ended up on the losing side.
It means that Chelsea will be looking for their first points of the competition later in September when they host Benfica at Stamford Bridge.
Now that Jose Mourinho is widely tipped with a move to become Benfica’s new manager, it adds extra spice to the fixture. Maresca admits he’s excited about the prospect of facing Mourinho later this month.
- READ MORE: Vincent Kompany wanted a word with two Chelsea players after Bayern Munich Champions League clash
Winners
Despite suffering a defeat against Bayern, Chelsea still had plenty of reasons to be positive. We’ve taken a look at the three biggest winners from the Champions League result…
Robert Sanchez: It is only right that the spotlight is focused on Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez when he performs well because he usually receives plenty of criticism.
The 27-year-old gloveman certainly wasn’t at fault for his team’s loss at Bayern. In fact, he made some memorable saves to keep the scoreline down, including an instinctive block with his right glove to deny Michael Olise from a close distance.
| Minutes played | Saves | Accurate passes | Accurate long balls | Aerial duels won | Recoveries | Match rating |
| 90 | 3 | 30/38 (79%) | 7/14 (50%) | 1/1 (100%) | 5 | 7.0 |
Joe Cole praised Sanchez immediately after the Chelsea shot-stopper’s latest display, which will hopefully be a springboard for him to kick on.
Cole Palmer: Chelsea fans may not be surprised that Cole Palmer, 23, was his side’s best performer against Bayern. Even though he lost, he was a big winner from the contest because he yet again increased his level to perform in a high-profile fixture.
The attacking midfielder scored a superb goal at the Allianz Arena and proved on the Champions League stage he can mix it with the best.
It is a testament to his impact that even Bayern supporters raved about Palmer this week after witnessing his performance against their side.
Andrey Santos: Blues midfielder Andrey Santos proved he’s ready to play more football after an eye-catching cameo off the bench against Bayern.
Santos, 21, added so much energy and creativity in the centre of the park for Chelsea. He was even denied a genius assist in the closing stages when Palmer’s second goal was disallowed for an offside.
In contrast, Enzo Fernandez looked a bit tired in midfield, so it should be on Maresca’s mind to rotate a bit more.
Ahead of Chelsea’s trip to Manchester United this Saturday in the Premier League, Santos has surely put himself into the conversation for a starting role. The Brazilian youngster needs to be used more because he possesses the quality on and off the ball to make key contributions.
Losers
Of course, there were plenty of negatives from Chelsea’s loss in Munich. We’ve picked out the two biggest losers from the defeat against Bayern…
Malo Gusto: It surprised some people that Malo Gusto started at right-back against Bayern, which allowed Reece James to drop into midfield. In fact, it was a repeat of what happened in the Club World Cup final in July.
Unfortunately, Gusto’s midweek performance underlined why James should be the starting right-back, especially in the crunch fixtures.
Even though the 22-year-old French full-back showed a great engine to get up and down the pitch, he was at fault for Bayern’s third goal when he gifted them possession. We still have doubts about him defensively when he faces world-class opponents.
Pedro Neto: Chelsea winger Pedro Neto came off against Bayern midway through the second half without leaving much of an impact on the contest.
The 25-year-old speedster, who played on the left wing in the Champions League defeat, struggled to create anything in Munich. While he’s got the versatility to play on the left, it is another reminder he’s at his very best on the right wing where he’s got room to cut infield.
Jason Cundy thinks Neto is in brilliant form right now in the opening weeks of the season. However, like teammate Fernandez, we’re wondering if he could do with a rest this weekend at Old Trafford against Man Utd because he’s played a lot of football in recent months.
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
