Chelsea visit Swansea: Key clashes and matchups
Chelsea return to Premier League action on Sunday as they face a tough trip to Swansea City. Here are some key matchups across the field.
LEICESTER, ENGLAND – AUGUST 27: Leroy Fer of Swansea City celebrates scoring his sides first goal during the Premier League match between Leicester City and Swansea City at The King Power Stadium on August 27, 2016 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
The Premier League is back! After a week of international football boring the masses all over the world, domestic action has returned. Chelsea will travel to take on Swansea City and, ahead of the game, we’ve picked out some key clashes to focus on.
Leroy Fer vs. N’Golo Kante
The team that controls the midfield is often the team who emerges on top. In that way, the match-up between Leroy Fer and N’Golo Kante is vital for both sides.
These two players are new signings for their respective club. Fer was on loan at Swansea for a bit of last season, but he moved permanently over the summer. The Dutch midfielder built a decent reputation in Holland before arriving on these shores and he has established himself as a solid Premier League player.
Kante, meanwhile, is on his way to being proven as the signing of the summer. He was integral to Leicester City’s cause last season and he has immediately become as important for Chelsea.
While the Frenchman will be doing his thing all over the field, he will need to deal with Fer’s attacking danger. He has scored two goals in four games from midfield thus far, with his rocket of a strike rendering him a threat from almost any area.
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 27: Willian of Chelsea (L) is challenged by (R) Michael Keane Eof Burnley during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Burnley at Stamford Bridge on August 27, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Ben Hoskins/Getty Images)
Willian vs. Stephen Kingsley
Stephen Kingsley is a 22-year-old Scottish defender who came up with Scottish Championship side Falkirk. He joined Swansea in 2014 and after loans at Yeovil Town and Crewe Alexandra, he’s back with the Swans this year and covering for the recovering Neil Taylor. All of this is to say that if he starts, as he has in each of Swansea’s Premier League matches this season, he has no business being in any way effective versus Willian.
Though usual left-back Neil Taylor played 90 minutes for Wales over the international break and has declared himself fit to start in the Premier League, Swansea manager Francesco Guidolin isn’t expected to destabilize his back line. That means Willian should have an inexperienced and wide-eyed player facing his toughest task lining up across him.
One could argue that Willian’s flank is always the most important since the more trouble he causes on the right the more space Hazard will have to work with on the left. In matches such as this, Willian getting beyond Kingsley should happen early and often enough to scare the Swans into overcompensating. Chelsea should also be capable of keeping the lion’s share of possession so Willian should be able to be more offensive than usual.
In his last league match, the Brazilian dribbled into the opponent’s box and smacked a shot across the keeper into the side netting. It was one of those things Antonio Conte loves to see: a winger putting a defender on his heels and getting into the box. Against Swansea and young Stephen Kingsley, Conte should see it enough times to buy Willian flowers after the match.
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 27: Eden Hazard of Chelsea celebrates scoring his sides first goal with team mates during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Burnley at Stamford Bridge on August 27, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images)
This Year’s Quality vs. Last Year’s Complacency
Though Chelsea’s wins have come against lesser opposition, they’ve shown a resilience that was absent last season. Teams would keep coming at Chelsea, peg them back, and eventually the pressure would tell and the Blues would walk away with a horrid result. That appears to no longer be the case. The next step is to not get in those situations in the first place.
That’s what to look for against Swansea. The Swans have lost a lot of their key players and Chelsea have superstar talents in renewed form. The match shouldn’t be at all close. The Chelsea of last season walked into matches assuming they’d already be a goal up. Then, once a goal down, the team’s shattered mystique gave them two obstacles to overcome: the opponent, and their own self-doubt.
There’s a tremendous gap in talent between the sides both clubs will send out. Chelsea need to be intent on exposing that gap for 90 minutes. If they are, then last gasp heroics – while fun in the end – won’t be necessary (arguably much more fun in the end).
It would be a sign of continued progress to see the team shake the habit of playing down to their opponent. Though many more Chelsea players took part in international duty, they were given the gift of a late afternoon Sunday kickoff.
Tired legs shouldn’t be an issue, and, if I’m honest, neither should Swansea. If Chelsea are indeed on the route to being “back”, as well as a serious top-4 threat, this is a match where quality has to overpower the folly of complacency.
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