Chelsea 3-1 BATE Borisov - 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis: Europa League 2018/19
Chelsea registered a convincing 3-1 win over BATE Borisov during their Europa League Group L clash at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night. The Blues cruised to a healthy two-goal advantage within the first 10 minutes of the game and never looked like allowing the visitors back in the game as they continued to dominate possession for the majority of the game.
All three goals were scored by Chelsea academy graduate Ruben Loftus-Cheek as he made the best use of a rare opportunity that was handed out to him by Maurizio Sarri. The Englishman was a constant threat to Aleksei Baga's side courtesy of his natural ability to run at players and nimble movement that complements his strength and control over the ball.
BATE grabbed a consolation goal late in the second half through Alexei Rios in the 79th minute but Chelsea had already inflicted enough damage to emerge victorious as they continued their ascent in Group L after maintaining their 100 percent start so far in the competition.
The result meant that Chelsea are more or less likely to emerge as winners in Group L after securing nine points from their opening three games while Videoton FC's win over PAOK FC in the other game on Thursday now means that all the three other teams mentioned including BATE are level on three points at this point in time.
On that note, let's take a closer look at the major talking points from Chelsea's win over the Belarusian champions under the lights at Stamford Bridge:
#1 Lightning quick Chelsea trigger the alarm bells early on
Chelsea came out all guns blazing and were quickly off their blocks as Maurizio Sarri’s men delivered a slick and clinical onslaught that resulted in two early goals within the first 10 minutes of the game.
The Blues were handsomely rewarded for their fearless and direct approach that helped them grab the game by the scruff of its neck as BATE were handed a reminder of the harsh reality with respect to the gulf in class between both sides.
It only took Ruben Loftus-Cheek two minutes to break the deadlock, before adding a second six minutes later, as Chelsea were in dreamland when they doubled their overall goal tally in the competition so far within just 10 minutes of play at Stamford Bridge.
The lightning start was the perfect testament to how life has panned out for Chelsea under the new manager as they set the tone for a result that ensured they maintained their unbeaten run so far this season.