CONTE’S BACK TROUBLE
Roma punish awful Blues defence with El Shaarawy double
ANTONIO CONTE fiddled but Roma were on fire and Chelsea picked a fine time to spontaneously combust. This was not what Conte had in mind on his first competitive return to the Italian capital.
His team were a goal down in 38 seconds, two down by half-time and trailing by three early in the second half. The final score might have been more of an embarrassment had it not been for some fine saves by Thibaut Courtois.
Stephan El Shaarawy scored the first two, both brilliantly finished yet so poorly defended by Chelsea, who simply could not contain the threat of Edin Dzeko for the second time in this campaign.
Injuries in key areas of the squad are eating away but it is hard to equate this display with the unit Conte had so well drilled last season.
From the first minute to the last they were devoid of shape and composure at the back, and poorly protected in midfield.
Diego Perotti grabbed the third before missing the clearest chance of the game, firing over when totally unmarked in front of goal.
Courtois stopped Roma running riot, including one fabulous reflex save to deny Kostas Manolas from close range. It was so good that Manolas shook the goalkeeper by the hand.
Chelsea remain well placed to qualify for the last 16, mainly thanks to Atletico Madrid’s inability to beat Qarabag, the unfancied minnows from Azerbaijan.
‘The second half was really bad,’ said Conte. ‘Roma showed more desire to fight and win the game. I am disappointed about our second half. We all have to take the responsibility.
‘When you concede three goals you need to be worried because it means something doesn’t work. It’s very difficult to tell what this is but we must analyse the game and work on the tactical aspect.’
But their careless habits at the back nullified Conte’s attempt at another defensive reshuffle, swapping Gary Cahill to the right and Antonio Rudiger to the left and moving Cesar Azpilicueta to wingback, again. It soon backfired.
Chelsea’s defence failed to cope with Roma’s first attack of the game, a long diagonal pass from Aleksandar Kolarov to Dzeko. Dzeko could not make the contact he wanted as he twisted in the air but still managed to nod the ball into the path of El Shaarawy, who applied a searing strike with the outside of his right boot.
Francesco Totti, gazing down in imperial fashion from the VIP seats, would have approved. After their performance at Stamford Bridge, there was an air of confidence about Eusebio Di Francesco’s team.
Clearly, they thought Chelsea were there to be got at and here was further evidence. Without Azpilicueta in the back three and N’Golo Kante in midfield, the Premier League champions are not nearly as solid as they can be.
Kante has been out for nearly a month with a hamstring injury sustained on international duty with France. He has been back in training since Friday and travelled with the squad to Rome but he was not even on the bench.
‘ It’s not right to push,’ said Conte. ‘The player must have the right feeling.’
His continued absence meant Tiemoue Bakayoko was in tandem in the centre of midfield with Cesc Fabregas, who was making his 100th Champions League appearance.
At the back, they were vulnerable, often hustled into mistakes on the ball in dangerous areas when Roma chose to exert pressure but at least in the first half Conte’s team carried a threat when they went forward.
Eden Hazard, released by Fabregas, squandered a terrific chance to level soon after the opener but his finish was tame. Certainly, it did not match the electric burst of speed which took him away from the back four and his effort was easily saved by Alisson Becker.
Twice in quick succession Hazard forced Alisson to make low saves and Alvaro Morata missed the target as he tried to beat the Brazilian goalkeeper after Pedro charged down an attempted clearance from Kolarov.
Chelsea’s gathering momentum stalled when Hazard was hurt by Alessandro Florenzi stepping on his heel from behind. The stoppage was soon followed by a lapse in concentration from David Luiz as he tried to control a high ball. Courtois made the save, blocking from El Shaarawy, and cleared the corner which followed but the LLondonersd were stilltill outt off sorts t when Radja Nainggolan tested their defensive capabilities with another long pass from the left.
Rudiger seemed set to tidy it up but dithered and allowed it to bounce, while Azpilicueta was bbeatent ini a sprintit byb El ShShaarawy, who poked at a shot with his right foot to beat Courtois.
Early in the second half Conte replaced captain Cahill with Willian. Cue more shuffling around but no sooner had Pedro shifted into the role of wing-back than Perotti glided inside and sent a third goal skidding past Courtois from the edge of the penalty area.
Chelsea’s attacking threat faded after the break. They were on the back foot, striving to keep the score down and Conte’s substitutions did nothing to change that.
Back in the Italian capital, he came, he saw, he conceded three, just as Luiz Felipe Scolari did when Chelsea lost here 3-1 nine years ago. And he flew home with serious work to do before facing Manchester United on Sunday.