Defender Marcos Alonso was not included in Chelsea’s line-up for their opening match of the Premier League season against Everton as he wants to leave the club, manager Thomas Tuchel said on Saturday.
“He asked to leave and we agreed to his wish,” Tuchel told reporters after his team beat Everton 1-0 for their first victory at Goodison Park since 2017.
“That is why it would not have made sense to put him on the pitch.”
– Mixed performances for Chelsea’s new stars Sterling, Koulibaly in win over Everton – ESPN+ viewers’ guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more – Don’t have ESPN? Get instant access
The 31-year-old Alonso arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2016, being a central part of the team throughout the subsequent seasons.
Barcelona had been keen to sign both Alonso and Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta, but the latter signed a new contract at Stamford Bridge with the Catalan club’s finances hampering their ability to make signings.
Chelsea lost defenders Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen on free transfers during the summer before signing Kalidou Koulibaly and Marc Cucurella to bolster their backline.
Despite Saturday win, Tuchel said the team’s defense was not up to par against Everton.
“All three of our players in the back three are in their 30s and we struggled a bit in general at the end of the game,” Tuchel said.
“We need to improve our physical level and we are on it.”
Everton defender Ben Godfrey was admitted to hospital following a challenge from Kai Havertz early in the game.
“It feels like it is a small fracture of his leg. We are assessing that. He will be out for a while, Yerry (Mina) has an ankle injury and could be out for a while,” Everton manager Frank Lampard said.
Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp has said he is “12 out of 10” frustrated and at a loss to explain his side’s poor display in Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Fulham.
Last season’s Premier League runners-up needed a debut goal from substitute Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah’s 80th-minute strike to twice come from behind and cancel out Aleksandar Mitrovic’s brace at Craven Cottage.
– Don’t have ESPN? Get instant access – Olley: Liverpool could be left playing catch up
Although Liverpool saved a draw and had chances to win the game, they were some way below the impressive form that proved enough to beat champions Manchester City 3-1 in the Community Shield.
When asked how frustrated he is by the disparity in performance, Klopp said: “You want to know on a scale of 1 to 10? 12. Very, very because the performance was a defeat. That’s why we have to figure it out.
“The results are very important for us, obviously. I’d love to get three points, but I would have loved much more to play really good to be honest. We didn’t do that.
“It is my responsibility to find out why we played last Saturday a surprisingly good game for the moment we were in in preseason and seven days later we look like we are completely upside down. That doesn’t make sense. I speak to you now but I’m actually only thinking about that.”
LONDON — Arsenal started their 2022-23 top flight campaign with a 2-0 win against Crystal Palace, showing early signs of promise for this season. The Gunners hit the ground running, with their three debutants delivering solid performances.
Here are the main points, top players, key stats and notable moments from the game.
– MATCH REPORT | LEAGUE TABLE | FIXTURES
Jump to: Rapid response | Player ratings | Best/worst performers | Highlights and notable moments | Post match quotes | Keystats | Upcoming fixtures
Rapid Reaction: 3 takeaways
1. New season, new start for Arsenal
Arsenal were on the back foot on the opening Friday night of last season as they lost 2-0 to Brentford, but it was a different story under the lights across London this time. There has been plenty to excite Gunners supporters during a preseason in which they made shrewd signings and won all five friendlies, but this was the first major test of their hopes of returning to the top four and they passed. They had to ride their luck at times with Aaron Ramsdale called into one excellent stop to deny Eberechi Eze early in the second half, but Marc Guehi’s late own goal gave them a deserved win that will only heighten the sense of optimism around the club.
– Premier League team-by-team guide and burning questions – O’Hanlon: Ranking the Premier League’s best players (E+) – Premier League kit ranking: Which jerseys are 2022-23’s best?
2. Palace Miss Gallagher Spark
Eze is a fine player and as he steps up his return from an ACL injury, the highly rated 24-year-old will surely improve as he steps into the void vacated by Conor Gallagher, who returned to Chelsea after a season-long loan last term. But Crystal Palace missed Gallagher on Friday. Only Wilfried Zaha (15 goals, two assists) had more involvement goals than Gallagher (eight goals, five assists) and Palace missed both his energy from him to break up Arsenal’s periods of possession and his potency in the final third.
3. Arsenal’s debutants make the difference
William Saliba, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko made their Arsenal debuts at Selhurst Park and all contributed in different ways to a hard-fought victory. Jesus was impressive as Arsenal dominated the opening 35 minutes, while Zinchenko’s header was the key component of a clever corner routine that allowed Gabriel Martinelli to open the scoring. Saliba, perhaps the most long-awaited debutant of all, given he originally signed for Arsenal three years ago, was a much more assured presence than his more experienced centre-back partner Gabriel. It is only the beginning, but all three demonstrated their potential.
Arsenal: Ramsdale 8, White 6, Gabriel 5, Saliba 8, Zinchenko 7, Partey 7, Xhaka 7, Odegaard 6, Saka 7, Martinelli 7, Jesus 7. Subs: Tierney 6, Nketiah 6, Lokonga 6.
Best and worst performers
Best: William Saliba
The pressure on this kid is intense given Arsenal fans have been calling for his inclusion ever since he signed from Saint-Etienne in 2019 — and he didn’t disappoint. A composed display featuring several vital interceptions and helped Arsenal weather difficult periods.
worst: Odsonne Edouard
Palace struggled for a cutting edge during long periods of the game and Edouard missed their only real chance of the first half when heading straight at Ramsdale. He understandably substituted for Jean-Philippe Mateta before the hour mark.
Highlights and notable moments
Martinelli scored the first goal of the 2022-23 Premier League season off an Arsenal corner and a Zinchenko assist.
“We are going to try. There are a few things that we planned and if we could do them it would be great.” – Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta on the possibility of more transfers.
“It was very good because we start with a win and a clean sheet. It was a tough game, but we won at the end, so very good. I’ve waited a long time, but we [did it] in my first-ever game, and I am so happy.” – saliva
Key Stats (provided by ESPN Stats & Information)
– Gabriel Martinelli scored his 12th career Premier League goal, his second against Crystal Palace; he ties for the most goals against a single opponent in Premier League play (Sheffield United, West Ham, and Leeds United).
– Arsenal record their 33rd Premier League clean sheet under Mikel Arteta as manager; the fifth-most since his debut on Dec. 26, 2019.
up next
Crystal Palace: They face a tough next set of fixtures with a visit to last year’s runners-up Liverpool on Aug. 15, a home match against Aston Villa on Aug. 20 and a meeting with current Premier League champions Man City on Aug. 27.
Arsenal: They host Leicester City on Aug. 13 before playing newly promoted sides Bournemouth on Aug. 20 and then Fulham on Aug. 27.
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said it would be “difficult” to claim the Roman Abramovich era at Chelsea was good for the brand of England’s top division following this summer’s takeover at Stamford Bridge, which saw the Russian oligarch sell the club to a group led by LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly.
Following Abramovich’s arrival as Chelsea owner in 2003, the London club enjoyed unprecedented success, including five Premier League wins and two Champions League titles, and signed some of the world’s leading players due to the financial transformation overseen by the billionaire.
– Ogden: Chelsea need signings quickly to avoid backward slide – ESPN+ viewers’ guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more
But following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, the UK government sanctioned Abramovich and froze his assets, including Chelsea, due to his connections to Russian president Vladimir Putin. And though Masters declined to say that Abramovich would fail to pass the Premier League’s owners’ and directors’ test had it been in place when he bought Chelsea 19 years ago, he said that only the club’s fans would suggest that the Abramovich era was good for the league.
“It’s difficult to say now, with hindsight, that it’s all been good, given what has transpired over the last six-and-a-half months,” Masters said in a media briefing at the Premier League London headquarters. “I think if you ask Chelsea fans, they would give you a different answer.
“I think the situation we ended with has given the sport some challenges we’ve got to meet. Ultimately, there wasn’t an owners’ and directors’ test when Abramovich took ownership of Chelsea, so I suppose the answer to the question is , had there been that in place what would have happened and what safeguards we need to build in for the future?
“[There is] a rolling test, yes. Prevention is better than cure, isn’t it? There wasn’t then, there is now, it’s going to change and part of that actually is probably going to be the strengthening of the annual test.”
The Boehly consortium completed its £4.25 billion takeover of Chelsea on May 30 — 24 hours before the UK government’s May 31 deadline for the club to be sold.
And while there was widespread skepticism that the government would close Chelsea down had Abramovich failed to dispose of the club by the May 31 deadline, Masters said that there were real concerns that a deal may not have happened before the cut-off date.
“You’re in unique circumstances, nothing like this has happened before,” Masters said. “There was obviously a genuine concern the sale wouldn’t take place in the timeframe that was available.
“That didn’t happen thankfully. A lot of people worked extremely hard on it at the club’s end, the government’s end and Premier League’s end to make sure things were running as smoothly as possible. All I can say is we’re very pleased that happened, obviously.”
Cristiano Ronaldo left the stadium before the end of Manchester United’s 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano after being substituted at half-time.
Ronaldo, 37, made his comeback against the Spanish side after missing United’s tour of Thailand and Australia to deal with a family issue.
– ESPN+ viewers’ guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more
I have started the game before being replaced after the first 45 minutes. He was pictured leaving Old Trafford before the final whistle, with United sources afterward refusing to comment on whether his early exit from him was sanctioned by manager Erik ten Hag.
Ronaldo is keen to leave the club this summer in a bid to find regular Champions League football elsewhere. He has been linked with moves to Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Atletico Madrid, although sources have told ESPN that United are yet to receive a serious offer for the Portugal forward.
Sources have told ESPN that Ten Hag encouraged the squad members who played against Atletico Madrid 24 hours earlier to attend the friendly against Rayo.
Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Scott McTominay were among the players who watched from the directors’ box while others were in hospitality boxes. They looked on as Ronaldo’s replacement, Amad, opened the scoring for United early in the second half before Alvaro Garcia equalized for the visitors soon afterwards as United ended their preseason campaign with three wins, two draws and a defeat from their six games.
“Overall, I am happy, we made a good preseason,” Ten Hag said. “We make good progress and we’re ready for the season, but still I know there is a lot of room for improvement and we have to improve.
“It’s also a process that continues during the season, but for next week it’s about a result as well. The reception was fantastic. I felt the vibe in the stadium, I felt the vibe they want to send to the team.
“There has to be co-operation between fans and the team so we get the right emotion and, especially, the right results.”
