When Chelsea were defeated 2-1 by Arsenal in the 2020 FA Cup final at Wembley just over a year ago, two players ended up being the fall guys.
There was Reece James, who struggled at right wing-back — constantly dragged around by Ainsley Maitland-Niles’ movement inside and guilty of leaving space behind him, which Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang exploited. And there was Mateo Kovacic, whose harsh red card 17 minutes from time effectively ended any chance of a Chelsea fightback.
With that in mind, their starring performances in yesterday’s 2-0 victory over Arsenal were particularly notable. Romelu Lukaku inevitably dominated the headlines after an impressive performance on his second Chelsea debut but this was a dominant team display where relatively unheralded players shone.
Since taking charge of Chelsea in January, Thomas Tuchel has created an incredibly cohesive side who cut through the opposition’s lines with apparent ease. Before the Champions League final, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola explained how Chelsea do it.