Chelsea’s pre-season action hasn’t been impressive to watch outside of the club’s 3-0 defeat to Arsenal. The club went on to lose 2-3 to Bayern Munich, and 1-2 in favor of Inter Milan. New signing Alvaro Morata did not impress in the two games he played, and Chelsea manager, Antonio Conte, notices.
Morata joined Chelsea after a record £60million transfer from Real Madrid but hasn’t managed to get up to pace with the Chelsea style of play. He came on from the substitute bench in the match against Bayern Munich, but could only manage an assist in the 2-3 defeat.
In his second game against Inter Milan, the Blues lost, and fans began to wonder what’s happening with the 2015-2016 English League champion. Some fans attacked Conte on social media saying the manager place the new striker on the left side of the offensive instead of the center, which was given to Michy Batshuayi.
What Conte had to say
Right after the defeat to Inter Milan, Conte said Morata needs to improve his physical condition and must also better adapt to Chelsea’s football system. He went on to add that Morata did his best during the game, but he has to improve.
Conte isn’t wrong in his assessment of the situation. Throughout the match, Michy Batshuayi and Willian were the only men up front causing problems for Inter Milan.
Morata was nowhere to be seen, but despite that, one needs to realize that he’s not yet settled in, and still needs to get up to speed with Chelsea’s play style.
An assessment of the match
While watching the game, it was clear Chelsea did not play well. The team defended poorly as Inter Milan regularly slipped pass the three defenders.
Thibaut Courtois, Chelsea’s goal keeper, performed well, but his defenders made life difficult.
The referee also made some terrible decisions, especially the penalty call that gave Inter Milan their first goal.
Chelsea's biggest problem is defense. The 3-4-3 strategy might have worked well in the English Premier League, but so far, it has failed miserably against big European clubs.
Antonio Conte needs an alternative formation and some big changes at the front now that Diego Costa is no longer in the picture.
The good news is, Chelsea has signed new defenders and has shown interest in purchasing Alex Sandro for €70 million. No deal has been made just yet, but with the abysmal showing in the pre-season, Conte would want to boost his team’s defensive quality before the beginning of the new season.
Furthermore, Champions League is right around the corner, and everyone knows that’s where the difficulty lies.
