There has been so much discussion about Chelsea’s youthful indiscipline but in the end it was one of the kids who made a 45-year-old man lose control. It was a wild finale, Liverpool run ragged, and when Estevão Willian delivered the decisive blow deep into stoppage time it was the cue for Enzo Maresca to leave his technical area, charge down the touchline and join the mass of blue shirts as they celebrated in front of the disbelieving supporters in the Matthew Harding Stand.
Liverpool were beaten, their knack for late shows turned against them for the second successive weekend, and it is unlikely that Maresca cared when Anthony Taylor showed him a second yellow card. Call it the sweetest sending off of the Italian’s managerial career. Nobody will be casting doubt over his job security now. Not after witnessing the world champions make light of a recent stumble and an extensive injury list by producing a performance of grit and style to ensure that Liverpool ended a dreadful week with their third consecutive defeat in all competitions.
If it feels premature to call it a crisis, it is certainly true that Liverpool must act quickly to reverse their slump. The response to looking up rather than down for the first time under Arne Slot will be fascinating. Do the champions rally after losing top spot to Arsenal or do they fall into a decline reminiscent of Manchester City’s struggles last season?
The positive is that Slot is not the type to panic. Dissecting this defeat, the Dutchman pointed to the changes Liverpool went through in the summer. He was adamant that the misfiring duo of Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak will eventually develop an understanding.
At the moment, though, the connections are lacking. Liverpool are suspect defensively, the void left by Trent Alexander-Arnold’s departure at right-back has not been filled, the midfield is too open and there was not enough concerted pressure on a Chelsea back four that contained three full-backs by full time.
Isak did collect an assist midway through the second half, albeit with a heavy touch for Cody Gakpo to cancel out Moisés Caicedo’s stunning opener, but otherwise it was a listless display from the £125m striker. As for Salah, his shooting accuracy has rarely been worse. All of the forward’s efforts went off target, although he was not alone in suffering. Liverpool struggled as a collective. Maresca’s tactics outfoxed Slot in the first half and Chelsea’s bench also made a huge difference during the last 15 minutes. Estêvão, the Brazilian sensation, had sparkled after coming on and was threatening to decide the game even before he popped up with his first goal since joining from Palmeiras.
But one of Chelsea’s best win under Maresca was not about individuals. This was a team effort. The unfamiliar central defensive partnership of Benoît Badiashile and Josh Acheampong excelled before being disrupted when both cramped up. Caicedo and Enzo Fernández fought through fatigue to impress in midfield. Reece James was strong at right-back, then solid when he had to slot in at centre-back. Alejandro Garnacho, dangerous on the left, forced Slot to take Conor Bradley off at half-time.
Systemic cracks remained apparent. Bradley was unnerved by Garnacho’s willingness to run behind him, Ibrahima Konaté and Virgil van Dijk were iffy and there were some nervy early touches from Giorgi Mamardashvili, making his league debut in goal because of Alisson’s absence.
Little worked for Liverpool. Salah wasted opportunities to release Isak and there were structural problems in midfield, caused by Maresca’s decision to put Malo Gusto rather than Reece James next to Caicedo and Fernández.
Gusto was an energetic, highly effective pest. The Frenchman stuck to Alexis Mac Allister, preventing the Argentinian from instigating the buildup, and even made the opening goal when a quick ball round the corner to Caicedo exposed gaps in Liverpool’s setup in the 14th minute.
There was so much space for Caicedo that for a moment he looked unsure what to do with it. But when Van Dijk backed off there was only path to take. Caicedo delivered, ripping a screamer past Mamardashvili from 25 yards.
A special goal to enliven a mundane half. Chelsea played it carefully, sitting back and launching counterattacks. Maresca had to be pleased when he saw Ryan Gravenberch misplacing passes. The one scare came from Salah crossing for Isak to head over but Chelsea looked strong and might even have had a penalty when Dominik Szoboszlai tangled with Garnacho. Maresca being booked for his furious appeal was not the best look given that his young side keep getting red cards.
Chelsea needed to maintain their composure. They wanted a second yellow for Bradley when the right-back fouled Garnacho. Taylor’s leniency allowed Slot to bring Florian Wirtz on for Bradley at half-time and task Szoboszlai with dealing with Garnacho.
Wirtz was immediately involved, releasing Salah, who shot wide. Chelsea fell back. Badiashile went off for Roméo Lavia. Acheampong made way for Jorrel Hato, another 19-year-old. Liverpool also had problems. Konaté limping off saw Gravenberch drop into defence.
The level of Liverpool’s play was low. They were level when Szoboszlai’s deflected cross reached Isak, whose attempt to turn and shoot became the perfect assist for Gakpo, who arrived to beat Robert Sánchez. Chelsea, though, were defiant. They found a second wind when Maresca brought on Estêvão, Jamie Gittens and Marc Guiu. Estevão and Gittens went close. Fernández headed against a post from an Estevão cross. No matter. Chelsea roared back. Marc Cucurella delivered a low ball, Andy Robertson fell asleep at the far post, Estevão slid in to score, Maresca set off on his run and Slot was left wondering whether his big rebuild is going to click.
