Frank Lampard's Super Cup curse strikes again, but Chelsea find a way forward

Action Images via Reuters
James Olley14 August 2019

Backup goalkeeper Adrian was Liverpool's penalty shootout hero as they beat Chelsea to win the Uefa Super Cup and kick off a new European season.

After Champions League holders Liverpool and Europa League winners Chelsea finished extra time at 2-2, Adrian made the crucial save with his leg to deny Tammy Abraham and give his team a 5-4 win on penalties in a game which finished after midnight Turkish time on Thursday.

Lampard’s Super Cup curse strikes again

Frank Lampard lost this match twice as Chelsea captain – once on penalties against Bayern Munich – and the Super Cup curse came back to haunt the 41-year-old as substitute Tammy Abraham missed the decisive spot-kick in a penalty shoot-out to hand Liverpool a 5-4 win.

Action Images via Reuters

This match was never top of the Blues’ priorities this season but a trophy would have given Lampard and his players early-season momentum, not to mention extending a remarkable run of averaging one trophy for each of the 16 years Roman Abramovich has owned the club.

They fell short by the finest of margins but another crack at earning more silverware looks more likely than it did a few days ago.

In Pictures | Liverpool vs Chelsea, Uefa Super Cup | 14/08/2019

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Chelsea rediscover their resilience

The Blues were poor without the ball against Manchester United and collapsed midway through the second half at Old Trafford.

The first 15 minutes threatened to go the same way. Liverpool started on the front foot but Chelsea held firm and deserved the lead given to them by Olivier Giroud and warranted the extra-time equaliser which came courtesy of Jorginho’s penalty.

This was a performance to inspire confidence for the challenges that lie ahead with Lampard earning considerable credit even though he ended up on the losing side here.

Lampard doesn’t rip up Sarriball – and Kante thrives

AFP/Getty Images

Among the most prominent criticisms of Maurizio Sarri was his deployment of Jorginho instead of N’Golo Kante at the base of a three-man midfield. Kante is arguably the best in the world in that position but Sarri favoured Jorginho’s quarter-back positioning to maximise his rang of passing.

Lampard is the antithesis of Sarri in many people’s eyes but he opted not to revert Kante, surprisingly available given the downbeat pre-match prognosis, back to his favourite position upon his return from a knee injury.

It looked a risk early on as Chelsea struggled to beat the press but quickly became something of a masterstroke.

Kante’s ability to transition at pace helped the Blues cause Liverpool all sorts of problems on the break. He was excellent throughout, at the heart of everything good about Chelsea’s performance.

Pulisic shows promise

REUTERS

Lampard decided to give Christian Pulisic his first competitive start and the £58million signing from Borussia Dortmund showed considerable promise.

The 20-year-old has been burdened with the unfair expectation of replacing Eden Hazard’s creativity but there were moments here when he managed more than a passing impression of the Belgian, creating the opening goal with an excellent pass before cutting in on his right foot and firing low past Adrian.

That strike was ruled out for offside – correctly – but there was nothing wrong with his execution.

Mason Mount replaced him with 16 minutes left of normal time, perhaps as a little fatigue set in, but Chelsea fans can expect much more to come on this evidence

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