Chelsea have just played one of their worst halves of the season in the game away at Copenhagen.
The Blues were so devoid of energy or ideas in the first period, it was honestly hard to watch.
Simon Johnson of the Athletic called it what it was:
“That’s the end of the what was a very dull half. 0-0. #CFC playing too slow and with little imagination/ideas,” he Tweeted.
On TNT Sport, Joe Cole said they’ve been “playing at 85%”, which is perhaps even generous. There’s no excuse for not being at 100% in a European knockout game, no matter who you’re playing. They simply have to do better in the second period.
If you want to put a number on it – they managed a total of 0.02 xG in the half – a truly pathetic effort. Copenhagen deserve a lot of credit for their efforts for sure, but this shouldn’t be a competition really. We expect something very different in the second period.
Dewsbury-Hall gets slammed for efforts between the lines
One player who has come in for particular criticism online is Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. He’s been blessed with something of a free role between the lines on the left, but has been so poor. He’s not been able to create anything.
Various influencers online called him a “useless flop”, some in even harsher language.
“The fact he’s playing is spitting in the face of every academy midfielder,” said another.
“The less said about Dewsbury-Hall the better. Shocking acquisition,” said Alex Goldberg of last summer’s £35m signing.
“What does Dewsbury-Hall do?” was one question which rather summed it up.
He ended the game with a 6.6 rating on SofaScore, which is the lowest of all the starters who completed 90 minutes. He’s not good enough for this level – and certainly not good enough for the level we want to get to.
