Chelsea 1-1 Newcastle (Trippier OG 27’ | Gordon 9’)
STAMFORD BRIDGE – With the sun glaring down on Stamford Bridge, Chelsea are one team who cannot be accused of suddenly operating as if they are already on the beach. After all they have spent most of the season exerting themselves as if they had nothing to play for.
This time, it was true, but it remains an indictment of the way apathy has set in across the club, as Frank Lampard‘s final game in charge was marked by his side securing their lowest Premier League finish since 1994.
There was at least a quiver of anticipation as the news emerged ahead of kick-off that Mauricio Pochettino had finally signed a three-year deal, with his appointment set to be officially confirmed in the coming days.
The arrival of some much-needed direction will be welcome, though that did not prevent Lampard being given a fond farewell. A “Frank Lampard’s Blue and White Army” banner travelled across the Matthew Harding Stand, while the Shed saluted Cesar Azpilucueta with a blue and white tifo.
By the time Anthony Gordon, playing in an unfamiliar role at No. 8, had put Newcastle in front just six minutes in, those white placards had already been transformed into paper airplanes, competing with the beach balls thrown nonchalantly from the away end behind the goal line.
The bare-chested travelling Geordies were singing of trips to Madrid and Italy, on one of the rare 22-degree days when it made sense for so many of them to be topless. Chelsea, by contrast, do not have a Champions League campaign to look forward to, nor European football of any kind. The Pochettino era will begin amidst huge uncertainty over what the squad will look like, and the only real inevitability is that a sizeable overhaul will be needed.
Lampard has tried to revive spirits by giving opportunities to homegrown players, as he did in his first spell in charge, but there is likely to be an exodus of them too, led by Mason Mount and which could also feature Ruben Loftus-Cheek – who appeared to wave an emotional goodbye during his substitution – Trevoh Chalobah, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Conor Gallagher. Next season Chelsea’s identity could be more muddled than ever.
If Lampard has achieved one thing it is taking the sting out of a season that dwindled into nothingness after Thomas Tuchel’s exit.
The vitriol aimed at Graham Potter has been replaced by indifference. Polite applause for Thiago Silva, deservedly named Player of the Year even if the bar was spine-bendingly low. A brief roar when Raheem Sterling turned past Elliot Anderson and his strike bounced off Kieran Trippier’s leg, onto his hand and into his own net.
There was plenty of that: the art form of “last day of the season defending”. A welcome relief for Newcastle, who have often been embroiled in the relegation drama unfolding at Goodison Park and the King Power. For Chelsea, it is a wake-up call. The last time they had a season resembling this – in 2015-16 they finished 10th and replaced Jose Mourinho with Guus Hiddink – Antonio Conte came in and they won the league the very next season.
Nobody is seriously expecting that at first from Pochettino, only the restoration of a proper system, even a bit of entertainment, and the introduction of an accomplished backroom team that will improve raw players like Noni Madueke and Lewis Hall.
Pochettino was not an instant hit in his first season at Spurs, which was spent clearing out dead wood and transforming the squad’s mentality. That would be a good start at Chelsea, for whom this miserable campaign could not end soon enough.
from Football - inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/9LnRB7l
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