Goallessness appears to be contagious.
Chelsea Women have misfired in their first three league outings as they attempt to defend their title... and now the problem has spread to the men.
A soporific 0-0 draw with West Ham at the London Stadium earned a point which ended the winning streak, producing a result which suited the Irons, without Marko Arnautovic.
Both Olivier Giroud and Alvaro Morata took turns as guest striker for the Blues, but neither was able to threaten Lukasz Fabianski in the Hammers goal.
In fact, Chelsea were lucky to escape with a draw as West Ham had the best openings on the break. But Andriy Yarmolenko headed wide with the goal spread open before him, and Michail Antonio’s shot flew off keeper Kepa’s left knee.
Maybe the weather was the problem. Sunday lunchtime’s game began in driving rain and finished in unexpected sunshine.
Chelsea had the lion’s share of possession, but at times just seemed determined to rack up sky-high Opta ratings for successful passes, rather than troubling Lukasz Fabianski.
“It’s impossible to win every match,” said Morrie Sarri afterwards. Well, Chelsea had made it look possible up to then by taking three points from every league game.
Now the Blues entertain Liverpool at the Bridge in a six-point cruncher, as well as playing them in midweek in the Jelly Baby Cup, or whatever it’s called this time.
The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and unless specifically stated are not necessarily those of Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
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