LUKAKU LIGHTS UP THE BRIDGE
Striker’s fourth Chelsea goal seals victory
Just four games into the second coming and Romelu Lukaku has silenced the doubters and stolen the show. One against Arsenal, his first for Chelsea, two against Aston Villa, his first at stamford Bridge and then this, the winner on a night when the European champions found it heavy going against Zenit st Petersburg.
they struggled for much of the first half, improved but found the Russians to be stubborn opponents. the pre-match pyrotechnics and air of celebration was fizzling out into an anxious hush when Cesar Azpilicueta delivered a fabulous cross from the right and Lukaku adjusted his feet.
Back he shuffled and up he sprang, high above Dmitri Chistyakov before aiming a powerful header inside the post. His first Champions League goal for the club and a forceful reminder of what he adds to thomas tuchel’s team.
He adds the killer touch. He offers different ways to score goals and his aerial threat is a wonderful weapon when teams pack the defence and sit deep, as Zenit did. For a long time, it seemed likely to earn them a point.
tuchel was again left to purr over the pedigree of the Belgian striker and the qualities he brings to the Chelsea table.
‘It was an excellent header, a well-timed cross by Azpi from a good space,’ noted the stamford Bridge boss. ‘that is why he is here. He likes to score and again he was decisive for us.’
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin was at stamford Bridge to decorate the champions with more personal prizes, four months after their night of triumph against Manchester City in Porto.
Ceferin was booed on to the pitch by a rebellious home crowd, although they warmed to him once he began to hand out the silver to Jorginho for best player, Edouard Mendy for best goalkeeper, N’Golo Kante for best midfielder and tuchel for best coach.
Songs of celebration filled the air, tributes to heroes past and present but the champions were sluggish, slow to find any rhythm as Zenit made a bright opening.
the Russians mirrored tuchel’s team shape — with holding midfielder Wilmar Barrios deployed as one of three central defenders.
they snapped into tackles and broke quickly on the turnover, with Brazilians Claudinho and Malcom trying to spring out in support of lone striker sardar Azmoun from out wide.
But for all their promise they failed to create very little despite this encouragement. Reece James recovered his ground before Claudinho could collect a flick from Azmoun and take aim. Centre-half Yaroslav Rakitskiy blazed an ambitious effort from long range high into the Matthew Harding stand.
Rakitskiy’s aim was slightly better as he produced the game’s first shot on target, a curler from the edge of the penalty box, easily gathered by Mendy, seven minutes before half-time.
Chelsea, by this point, had assumed control in midfield, were moving the ball around at a brisker tempo, squeezing the visitors deeper and finding ways to bring Lukaku into the action.
Yet tuchel cut an agitated figure on the touchline, spinning on his heel in frustration and trading thoughts with his coaching staff. His team found little fluency but there was more intent after the interval.
Hakim Ziyech’s crisp attempt fizzed across the turf and forced a decent save from Zenit’s goalkeeper stanislav Kritsyuk and Lukaku almost latched on to a low cross from Marcos Alonso.
Antonio Rudiger then made a careering run from deep inside his own half, slicing through the centre of the pitch, cutting past two Zenit defenders before going for goal.
He caught it sweetly and his fierce strike flashed narrowly wide but the crowd were now on their feet and demanding more.
tuchel made his first change soon after the hour. On went Kai Havertz, goal hero on that night in Porto, and off went Ziyech.
Zenit sank deeper, defending their penalty area but the resistance was broken by Lukaku.
tuchel was delighted to have overcome a tricky first hurdle.
He said: ‘We expected a tough game because it’s the highest competition in Europe and it’s the Russian champions. ‘We had to be at our top level. ‘I am happy because we had to work a lot. It was not easy.
‘Winning is good for our belief. We are not finished but we are in a good place to improve.’
CHELSEA (3-4-2-1): Mendy 6; Azpilicueta 7 (Silva 83), Christensen 6, Rudiger 8; James 7, Jorginho 7, Kovacic 6, Alonso 6 (Chilwell 83); Ziyech 5 (Havertz 63), Mount 6 (Loftus-Cheek 90); Lukaku 7.
Booked: Azpilicueta. ZENIT ST PETERSBURG (5-4-1): Kritsyuk 6; Sutormin 6, Barrios 6, Christyakov 6, Rakitskiy 6 (Krugovoy 88), Santos 6 (Erokhin 76); Malcom 6 (Dzyuba 75), Wendel 6, Kuzyaev 6 (Kravtsov 82), Claudinho 7; Azmoun 6. Booked: Rakitskiy. Man of the match: Antonio Rudiger. Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (Poland). Attendance: 39,252.