Mauricio Pochettino’s team displayed promise in their attacking efforts on Sunday, but the Argentine manager would have surely been disappointed with their defensive performance. The story of Chelsea’s day filled with lackluster defending began a mere seven minutes into the match at the London Stadium. Nayef Aguerd was granted an abundance of space to head in a corner delivered by West Ham newcomer James Ward-Prowse.
The second goal scored by the hosts painted an equally unflattering picture of Mauricio Pochettino’s squad. A sequence of comical errors resulted in Michail Antonio nearly blasting the net with a powerful shot just eight minutes into the second half. The absurdity reached its peak when Moises Caicedo, the £115 million ($146 million) signing, carelessly fouled Lucas Paqueta in the closing moments, conceding a late penalty that Paqueta himself converted from the spot, securing a 3-1 victory.
As much as this will have frustrated Pochettino, there were at least some signs of life going forward – something that was desperately lacking for pretty much the entirety of the 2022-23 season.
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Raheem Sterling was unplayable at times and his side peppered Alphonse Areola’s goal. If Enzo Fernandez could have scored his penalty, or the Blues could have shown a little more composure when West Ham were reduced to ten me after Aguerd’s red card, they likely would have come away from east London with something.
Instead, they head back across the capital with the sour taste of defeat in their mouths – with Pochettino still awaiting his first three points as Blues boss. The footballing revolution he was tipped to bring certainly hasn’t started yet.