Maresca must drop Chelsea’s 4/10 forward

Chelsea fell to their first Premier League defeat since the opening day, losing 2-1 to Arne Slot’s Liverpool at Anfield this evening.

Enzo Maresca’s men hadn’t lost a league outing since the meeting with Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on the 18th of August, but their long unbeaten run came to an end after six matches.

Goals from Mohamed Salah and Curtis Jones either side of Nicolas Jackson’s equaliser secured the victory for the hosts, taking them top of the Premier League once again.

As for the Blues, they sit in sixth place, just a couple of points outside the top four – a respectable place given the turnaround in players once more this summer.

It certainly will be a test for the Italian to pick his side up after such a large period without tasting defeat, with his side having a meeting in the Europa Conference League before hosting Newcastle United next Sunday.

Chelsea’s star performers against Liverpool

Striker Jackson may have only managed seven successful passes during the entirety of the meeting, but he was a threat at the top end of the pitch.

The Senegalese international’s movement caused problems for the backline, hitting the woodwork in the first half before perfectly timing his run in the second half between the two centre-backs before keeping his composure and firing home beyond Caoimhin Kelleher.

Full-back Malo Gusto featured in an unfamiliar left-back position for a large chunk of the encounter, facing up against the dangerous Salah, but didn’t look out of place whatsoever.

The 21-year-old Frenchman completed 95% of his passes, completing one dribble, whilst also making four passes into the final third as he looked to create opportunities despite his defensive role.

Out of possession, Gusto was just as impressive, winning three tackles, whilst making four interceptions as he also won four duels, preventing Slot’s side from inflicting further pain on the Blues.

However, the same can’t be said for one player who failed to have any sort of positive impact on the fixture, as reflected by his early departure from the pitch.

The man who dropped a 4/10 rating against Liverpool

Winger Jadon Sancho started his fourth successive game for Chelsea after his loan move from Manchester United, but he was unable to replicate the impact he had previously produced in his previous outings.

The 24-year-old’s display was undoubtedly the worst of his spell in West London, as demonstrated by his substitution at half-time, subsequently being replaced by Portuguese international Pedro Neto.

When delving into his stats, his replacement was completely justified as he failed to threaten opposition full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Sancho only managed 26 touches during his 45-minute display, a tally lower than goalkeeper Robert Sanchez who managed 47, failing to complete any of his three attempted dribbles, whilst also losing possession seven times.

The English winger also lost 100% of the duels he entered, also failing to complete any crosses and produce any form of tangible threat in attacking areas.

Subsequently, Sancho was handed a 4/10 match rating by iNews’ journalist George Simms, an indication as to how below-par the attacker was during his cameo.

The winger must now be dropped to the bench against Eddie Howe’s side next weekend, as a result of his disappointing display on Merseyside, as the manager must react to his performance.

It’s undoubtedly just a blip in what has been a successful first few months at Stamford Bridge, but Maresca may decide to utilise other options given his lack of impact this afternoon.