London is Blue Dispatch #081

After just one win in seven and Graham Potter keen to pile on the misery on his former employers, what Chelsea needed desperately was to flip the script. That they did. Instead of conceding from an error late in the second half, this time they did it late in the first. Colwill tried to point the finger at Robert Sanchez, only to belatedly realize he wasn’t playing.

There were familiar perils for Maresca’s Chelsea. Potter, who had urged West Ham to press and counterpress aggressively in his first three games in charge, came ready for a battle of attrition. The Hammers sat in a compact, narrow block with four fullbacks in a line of five. They expertly shepherded the ball out wide, making Madueke and Reece cross into the box against a side that has won the 2^nd highest number of aerial duels in the PL this season. Palmer, a lightbulb left perpetually on, even when the side was basking in the glow of a new manager bounce, flickered and shimmered in flashes. With West Ham grabbing their vital goal and Chelsea’s record of 2^nd half stinkfests, Chelsea needed all the fortune they had lacked in previous games.

Fortune favours the brave, and Maresca certainly played his part in taking adventurous trail. The largely pragmatic Italian for once refused to wait for his changes, moving swiftly to replace the largely listless Jackson with Guiu and throwing Neto on the right to offer a little more initiative. This is the first time Maresca made 4 of his 5 changes before the 62^nd minute, and his decision to freshen up the side paid off.

Colwill’s blatant shove and Guiu’s involvement in a highly improbable offside could have led to Neto’s equalizer being ruled out. Miraculously, VAR, often a cruel mistress to London clubs, did not steal it away. Both goals for the Blues came from crosses, a mode of attack that a short side lacking a battering ram CF isn’t really built for. The winner came from a healthy deflection of Wan-Bissaka’s foot that ballooned over the excellent Areola’s flapping palm. For once, a side notorious for dropping their levels after an hour looked rejuvenated for the last 30 with four early changes.

With Gusto occupying a more advanced role in the right half-space, Neto and Enzo rotated frequently to disorient West Ham’s backline. Guiu’s introduction added a more reliable aerial target into the box and Neto’s cross from the right saw the Spaniard create just the right amount of uncertainty for his Catalan comrade Cucurella to cut it back in for Enzo, leading to the goal. Palmer erupted to life after Nkunku’s introduction, going from ambling NPC to exuding his trademark protagonist energy – gliding effortlessly across the 18-yard box, sniffing for that little breathing room that often makes all the difference.

The tactics failed and crisis came earlier than usual, but this was Chelsea finally showing the grit, resilience and patience that haven’t quite been apparent since December. With Jackson and Guiu both picking knocks and the Jan transfer window hours from slamming shut, there may yet be aftershocks after escaping the initial tremor. But in a London derby, against the kind of sides they have failed to consistently break open this season, the Blues came from behind at HT to win a game at home for the first time since 2013 to crack the top four. Now for the hard part – to stay there until the end of the season.