Chelsea’s recent performance against Bournemouth highlighted a critical issue for manager Enzo Maresca: the persistent lack of a reliable centre-forward. Chelsea created a ton of chances and attacking momentum but were unable to score. This disappointing goalless draw brings further concern over their lacking attacking strategy. Beyond the story of Chelsea’s attacking evolution, Saturday’s match highlighted their defensive resilience, as Chelsea produced seven blocks, the second-most in any match this season. That was just the defensive effort—it was about 25 percent of Arsenal’s total blocks over the course of 15 Premier League games this season.
And the final score today over Bournemouth camouflages some deeper, bad issues about Chelsea, who are frankly incapable of producing a killer touch within the box right now. Once again, the team’s failure to turn chances into goals has played a big part in their recent plight. The growing concern over Liam Delap’s shoulder injury adds another layer of complication. It removes a key tactical option that could predominantly provide direct running and physicality to the attack. With Delap now out of the picture, Chelsea’s hunt for a remedy to their centre-forward conundrum becomes all the more pressing.
Aston Villa’s Resurgence
In direct opposition to Chelsea’s struggles, Aston Villa has carved out a space as one of the Premier League’s most dangerous teams. They’ve taken the league by storm, winning nine out of their last ten fixtures. That’s an amazing turnaround considering they didn’t win any of their first five games. One major reason has been the revitalized team led by dynamic attacking duo Ollie Watkins and Donyell Malen. How have both players turned it around? Both players have gotten their scoring touch back, scoring at critical times.
Users on Twitter loved how Aston Villa showed their attacking prowess in a8-goal barnburner against Arsenal. They produced their second most creative performance of the season in that contest. The team’s xG of 2.27 was solid, but they peppered 26 shots on Eugene Fucale that proved how well they could create high danger chances. Morgan Rogers was a true difference-maker with her direct running towards the Arsenal backline and was hugely influential in Villa’s attack.
Aston Villa continued their run of great form with a thrilling 4-3 away win over Brighton midweek. This was a game that created their highest quality chances of any Premier League match this season. The team’s belief is evident and they certainly appear ready to contend for the top spot in the league.
Arsenal’s Defensive Struggles
Arsenal’s recent performances have raised concerns, particularly following Gabriel’s injury. Since his departure, the team has had a mysterious defensive hole, giving up goals in four of five games. This is a stark departure from their last performance in which they conceded in just three of 17 matches. This fall-off in performance has come right on the heels of Cristhian Mosquera hitting the injury list. This is in addition to first-choice defenders, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes, further weakening Arsenal’s defensive options.
Mikel Arteta expressed frustration after the match against Bournemouth, stating, “We gave two balls away that could have cost us the game before the actual goal.” This statement really highlights the balancing act Arsenal are currently attempting as they go through several important injuries and inconsistent performances.
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