Old and the new give Sarri real reason to smile
MAURIZIO SARRI turned to the old and the new to solve Chelsea’s mini-crisis last night – and both turned up trumps.
Olivier Giroud at 32 was the old – grabbing two goals as Chelsea began the recovery from their weekend drubbing by Tottenham with an easy win against 10-man PAOK – and teenager Callum Hudson-Odoi was the young.
The 18-year-old – on the January radar of Bayern Munich as he hesitates over a new contract frustrated by a lack of playing time – at last got his chance under Sarri, and took it with both hands with a scintillating performance, a superb goal, and an assist as Alvaro Morata nodded in the fourth goal.
Chelsea had already qualified for the knockout stages and restored some pride with this victory after their Wembley mauling by Spurs.
Sarri gave winger Hudson-Odoi, who is currently in a contract dispute with the club, his first competitive start after several impressive appearances from the bench from the former England Under-17 World Cup winner – who has been linked with a January move to Bayern Munich. The Italian manager had pasted his side as lacking in determination after their 3-1 Premier League defeat to Tottenham at Wembley on Saturday, their first loss of the season so far.
Chelsea had won all four of their Group L games before last night but still needed a point to win to top the pool.
Hudson-Odoi was one of
10 changes from Saturday’s Wembley debacle.
Sarri had demanded a response, and Chelsea got a huge helping hand right at the start last night against PAOK. Visiting centre-back Yevhen Khacheridi, could not control Leo Matis’ loose pass. Giroud pounced, the defender brought him down – and was shown the red card. Cesc Fabregas put the free-kick just wide, and faced with only 10 men, Chelsea poured forward.
Giroud volleyed over, Hudson-Odoi shot just wide, then PAOK keeper Alexandros Paschalakis pulled off a brilliant save from Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s shot.
The goal had to come, and at last it did, when Pedro set up Giroud, who side-footed home from 15 yards in the 27th minute.
Hudson-Odoi then hit the bar, but Giroud grabbed his second in the 37th minute when he met Fabregas’s chip with a volley inside the near post that left Paschalakis helpless.
Paschalakis pulled off another great save from Loftus-Cheek, and Davide Zappacosta drove just wide.
And then, on the hour, Hudson-Odoi got his goal. From another pinpoint Fabregas pass, the teenager cut inside and fired his drive inside the near post for a glorious first senior strike.
Hudson-Odoi, was the star of the show, lifting the crowd every time he got the ball on the flank – and it was his cross that substitute Morata headed home for number four with 12 minutes to go.