closed Sevilla 0-4 Chelsea

[Hutcho 8,443]

In many ways we've got a win win situation tonight (in the short term).
Win and next week's game is practically a friendly.
Draw and top spot is in our hands next week (plus Sevilla winning at Rennes is anything but a foregone conclusion).
Lose and next week's game is practically a friendly.
So basically either side win we for all intents and purposes wipe a game of our schedule. If it weren't for Bayern (genuinely believe we'll make the quarters if we dodge them) I wouldn't really care about finishing top but assuming the other English teams finish top we will have a 1 in 4 chance of pulling them which is too high for my liking, so hopefully we get the win tomorrow! 

I agree. I want us to keep this train rolling of not losing but I'm fine with a draw and happy risking it a bit more with rotation to keep players fresh for Leeds who will be a challenge with their energy.

I fear one team which is bayern. Anyone else I can get behind the thought of us winning but bayern are just a different animal in recent years.

Plus given the fact that it looks like United, pool and city will all top their groups that is 3 teams we can't get if we come second which gives us:
25 percent chance bayern.
25 percent chance dortmund (assuming they stay top)
25 percent chance barca
25 percent (probably real if they win their last game at home which they should)

So we'd be favourites vs 1/4 of the teams there (even though I'd rate our chances of beating barca and real Madrid).

Now should we top the group it opens us up to a lot more possibilites:

Atletico Madrid
Inter (probably)
Porto
Atalanta
Lazio
Juve
Psg

No lay ups there either but no one I'd fear.

So in conclusion

Win the group. Draw Porto. Win. Sorted.

[Vesper 27,281]

36 minutes ago, Hutcho said:

I agree. I want us to keep this train rolling of not losing but I'm fine with a draw and happy risking it a bit more with rotation to keep players fresh for Leeds who will be a challenge with their energy.

I fear one team which is bayern. Anyone else I can get behind the thought of us winning but bayern are just a different animal in recent years.

Plus given the fact that it looks like United, pool and city will all top their groups that is 3 teams we can't get if we come second which gives us:
25 percent chance bayern.
25 percent chance dortmund (assuming they stay top)
25 percent chance barca
25 percent (probably real if they win their last game at home which they should)

So we'd be favourites vs 1/4 of the teams there (even though I'd rate our chances of beating barca and real Madrid).

Now should we top the group it opens us up to a lot more possibilites:

Atletico Madrid
Inter (probably)
Porto
Atalanta
Lazio
Juve
Psg

No lay ups there either but no one I'd fear.

So in conclusion

Win the group. Draw Porto. Win. Sorted.

would love to draw Porto as that allows us to see Malang Sarr in action against our steamroller

[Tomo 21,681]

15 hours ago, Hutcho said:

I agree. I want us to keep this train rolling of not losing but I'm fine with a draw and happy risking it a bit more with rotation to keep players fresh for Leeds who will be a challenge with their energy.

I fear one team which is bayern. Anyone else I can get behind the thought of us winning but bayern are just a different animal in recent years.

Plus given the fact that it looks like United, pool and city will all top their groups that is 3 teams we can't get if we come second which gives us:
25 percent chance bayern.
25 percent chance dortmund (assuming they stay top)
25 percent chance barca
25 percent (probably real if they win their last game at home which they should)

So we'd be favourites vs 1/4 of the teams there (even though I'd rate our chances of beating barca and real Madrid).

Now should we top the group it opens us up to a lot more possibilites:

Atletico Madrid
Inter (probably)
Porto
Atalanta
Lazio
Juve
Psg

No lay ups there either but no one I'd fear.

So in conclusion

Win the group. Draw Porto. Win. Sorted.

I think we'll be favourites against Real if they carry on playing like this. Barca the big danger is Messi having one of his touched by God games if he doesn't I truly believe we would get past Barca and pretty comfortably.

Bayern are the only big one to avoid for me, we'll make a bigger fist of it than last year but I still think over two legs they'll have a bit too much.

[petre.ispirescu 4,928]

The kind of match a draw is good enough for me because to be honest what I care about the most is to keep the momentum going and stay undefeated. I mean football is about the talent, IQ, tactics etc. but still the confidence and the atmosphere play a huge part, too and Chelsea must continue to ride this positive wave.

Although it seems to be the kind of match we've all seen before where we'd settle for a draw, why not, thinking it's an away game on a difficult ground and then Chelsea go there and do the job immaculately like the Conte wins at the Etihad or in Madrid v Atletico where I did not even break a sweat in front of the TV. And the similarities were that the momentum was in our favour and everything seemed to click at the club, this is why it is important to keep the unbeaten run going on and on.

[DANILA 290]

16 hours ago, Jason said:

Seeing how the likes of Atletico, Real, Inter, PSG etc are struggling to qualify from their group, really glad that we have done so without any trouble, especially in this crazy season. 

Me too, lucky we have the weakest group. We'd struggle in a strong group. 

[NikkiCFC 7,560]

I hope tonight we have trademark performance where we put a statement. In Conte second season which was not even a good season we had some amazing games like Atletico away. I hope for something like that tonight.

[Atomiswave 6,072]

14 minutes ago, NikkiCFC said:

I hope tonight we have trademark performance where we put a statement. In Conte second season which was not even a good season we had some amazing games like Atletico away. I hope for something like that tonight.

I dont expect it, we are through, have a hard match vs leeds in 3 days...as long as we dont lose its all good. We can demonstrate our current abilities come next rounds.

[DANILA 290]

I don't understand the mindset a lot of y'all have with this game regarding resting players for Leeds... this single game can shape the rest of our UCL campaign whereas we still have plenty of games in the PL. I think we should go all out to win this one to secure the group and have a much better chance of getting an easier opponent in the next round.  

[ZAPHOD2319 3,867]

We are coming fast to weeks of really close fixtures, some only separated by two days. You must rotate and get people minutes and rest. We are really positioned well to do this and get wins because of our depth. Something we did not have last year. 

[MoroccanBlue 5,192]

7 minutes ago, DANILA said:

I don't understand the mindset a lot of y'all have with this game regarding resting players for Leeds... this single game can shape the rest of our UCL campaign whereas we still have plenty of games in the PL. I think we should go all out to win this one to secure the group and have a much better chance of getting an easier opponent in the next round.  

Whilst I agree, Saturday could be another Southampton scenario where our players look ragged in comparison. 

Think we need to be selective here. 

[Tomo 21,681]

Mendy

 

James

Rudi

Whoever out of Thiago and Kurt need the rest less

Azpi

 

Kante

Kova

Kai

 

CHO

Giroud

Pulisic

 

Strong enough to give us a good chance of winning (certainly given Sevilla's absentee's) while keeping many player's fresh.

This is why we've assembled a big squad, in situation's like this (game in Spain followed by a high octane clash vs a Bielsa side 3 days later) we really need to be maximizing it!

[blues.bridge 340]

i would try gilmour-kante-kai

[DANILA 290]

No chance Gilmour starts, will probably get 5-10 mins though

[DDA 9,570]

Did anyone see Musiala for Byern last night? We let him go this year... looks like a promising young talent.

[blues.bridge 340]

2 minutes ago, DANILA said:

Nessuna possibilità che Gilmour inizi, ma probabilmente avrà 5-10 minuti

i know, i hope he gets 15-20 minutes. I think he can be who improve our play at midfield

[Vesper 27,281]

Sevilla’s Joan Jordan on Lampard’s influence and almost joining West Ham

https://theathletic.com/2231676/2020/12/01/joan-jordan-sevilla-chelsea/

Late in October’s opening 2020-21 Champions League game at home to Sevilla, Chelsea manager Frank Lampard would have recognised the danger as the ball dropped towards the edge of his team’s penalty area where visiting midfielder Joan Jordan had arrived unmarked.

To Lampard’s relief, Jordan’s swerving volley flew just a few inches too high, and the game at Stamford Bridge finished scoreless, setting both teams on the way to dominating Group E ahead of outsiders Rennes and Krasnodar.

Speaking before tonight’s return at the Estadio Sanchez Pizjuan, which will likely decide which team wins the group, Jordan tells The Athletic the former Chelsea midfielder might have had himself to blame had he found the net in their first meeting.

“I remember watching quite a lot of Lampard when I was growing up, he was a top, top, top player,” Jordan says. “What really sticks is how the way he arrived late into the box, that was spectacular. It is something very difficult, that he made look easy. I watched him a lot, many of his games. He finished each season having scored lots of goals.”

Former Espanyol and Eibar player Jordan, who joined Sevilla in summer 2019, says he grew up watching the Premier League. His two big influences were Lampard and his long-running England team-mate, but club rival at Liverpool, Steven Gerrard.

“I remember Steven Gerrard too, talking about the Premier League,” he says. “He and Lampard were standout players, especially when they got forward, arriving from the second line. I always looked at all the little details I could, from many different players, to become a more complete player myself.”

Catalan-born Jordan grew up during an era when Spain had many incredible midfielders, although he enjoyed watching world-class players from across the world.

“Zinedine Zidane was always my idol,” Jordan says. “He was just different to everyone else, with spectacular class. But then I focused on many different players — from Sergio Busquets, through Xabi Alonso, different types of holding midfielders. Then Xavi, Andres Iniesta, David Silva, many midfielders, above all those who brought such success to Spain. I try and take the best from everyone as there are moments in the play when you must attack, or when you must defend, or when you must take up the correct position on the pitch. I watched many midfielders as I was growing up, and I still do today. I watch a lot of football. Why not learn from the best?”

Jordan nods when The Athletic puts it that his style does not fit a tiki-taka template but is actually closer to the traditional English “box to box” of which Lampard and Gerrard are examples.

“In a Spanish 4-3-3, I would be more an eight, although I can play as a 10,” he says. “I like to have plenty of space and freedom, to help in attack but I always like to defend and help my team-mates. Football is evolving and everyone has to run, everyone has to sacrifice themselves and adapt to different functions that a coach asks for. I try and be the most intelligent possible on the pitch, tactically, to pick up the best positions between the lines, to do damage to the opponent. So, yeah, I like the idea of ‘box to box’, to reach the opposition area, but also to get back and help in my own. That is my style of play.”

---

Such strengths to his game means that Jordan could well already be playing in the Premier League, with Lampard’s first club West Ham having come very close to signing him in July 2019.

After coming through the ranks at Espanyol, Jordan spent 2016-17 on loan at Valladolid in the Segunda Division, then really came to prominence during two seasons at Eibar in Primera. He racked up 10 goals and eight assists, in a team where everyone also had to pull their weight off the ball. West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini liked what he saw, and the contract offer was very attractive. However a phone call from Sevilla sporting director Monchi led to a last-minute change of mind.

“I was very close to moving to England, I had an interesting offer,” Jordan admits. “But then Monchi called me, and I stopped everything with the Premier League. The project here, and the club, was very interesting for me. On a financial level, I lost out a bit, as we all know that the financial level in the Premier League is spectacularly strong. But I wanted to come here, to improve as a player, which was my objective. Maybe if I had moved there (England), I trust a lot in myself, but I don’t know if it would have gone so well.”

The decision was quickly vindicated as he settled in as a regular starter in a new-look Sevilla team put together by Monchi and coach Julen Lopetegui, who was also interested in helping develop the “box to box” nature of his game.

“Julen is such a professional, he spends 24 hours a day preparing for the next game,” Jordan says. “It is amazing. He wants me always to be close to the zone where the ball is. I help to bring it out from the back, he asks me to sacrifice myself in defence, and then with the ball that I get forward and arrive in the box. The biggest difference is that he wants me to be closer to the opposition penalty area, always wants me to have more shots.”

Taking his place in a well-balanced midfield three alongside ex-Manchester City holder Fernando and playmaker Ever Banega, Jordan played all but a few minutes in a linking role as Sevilla finished fourth in La Liga last season, then eased past Roma, Wolves, Manchester United and Inter Milan to win the Europa League trophy (again).

“We ended up at a very high level the three of us,” Jordan says. “Fernando is a spectacular player, he is 33 but it seems he is 27 or 28. He gives us so much. Ever has an impressive talent, and can cover a lot of the pitch with the ball. So you have to be intelligent and pick up another position that the team needs. This year he is not there, but maybe I will take on more of that job. I could see that I was reaching a good level last year, especially after the lockdown which was psychologically hard for everyone. Winning the Europa League helped a lot with confidence, as without confidence all players are vulnerable.”

---

The new campaign has brought more significant progress in Europe for Sevilla, so often dominant in the Europa League but less successful in the biggest competition.

Lopetegui’s team came very close to upsetting Bayern Munich in September’s UEFA Super Cup, then followed the commendable draw at Chelsea in their opening Champions League group game with three straight victories to book their place in the last 16.

Domestically their form has been mixed – Lopetegui’s side outplayed Barcelona in a 1-1 draw at the Nou Camp in early October, then lost three consecutive La Liga games just as their Champions League campaign was getting going.

“In the Super Cup we showed we had the mentality to compete in a game against Bayern,” Jordan says. “We played very well and it was a pity. We left the Nou Camp feeling we could have won. Although we have a deep squad, it is true that sometimes we have played games with less than 72 hours of rest and that would take it out of anybody. I wouldn’t say that playing in the Champions League has been a negative, but it will be difficult to repeat what we did last season. We must be relaxed about the situation. The season is very long and we will be up near the top for sure.”

A run of three consecutive La Liga victories has seen Sevilla climb back up the table to fifth position, and they have a better points per game record so far than either Real Madrid or Barcelona. The big two’s struggles have opened up La Liga this season, with Real Sociedad currently the surprise leaders.

“At the moment, we are not marking ourselves any objectives for the end of the season,” Jordan says. “If you think so far ahead then you lose energy, we just want to go and win each game. We have a lot of ambition, although we know that Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have great financial power, there is a big gap to the clubs on the next step. We trust a lot in ourselves, and have a very good squad, but we do not think too far ahead.”

Another objective for Jordan is to break into the Spain national team set-up, where other midfielders including Mikel Merino of Real Sociedad and Sergio Canales of Real Betis have been given opportunities recently by La Roja coach Luis Enrique.

“The national team is a personal objective I have always had, I am a very demanding and ambitious person,” Jordan says. “To play for Spain is one of the biggest things there is, but my head is in Sevilla. If I do things well here, on an individual and collective level, then for sure it can happen. I hope sooner than later, but I am not thinking any further than the day to day at Sevilla.”

Back at the Sanchez Pizjuan, there is also an understanding that at least some of last season’s Europa League winners will move on, sooner rather than later. Sevilla rejected a €65 million offer from Manchester City for defender Jules Kounde last summer, while other top Monchi captures such as Lucas Ocampos and Diego Carlos also have admirers elsewhere. Under contract at Sevilla until 2023, Jordan says that leaving last summer would have been very early within this current group’s development.

“On a collective level we have still more room to improve,” he says. “We can have a very exciting year. We have some great players, a very deep squad, with young players and also experience. There are players who are improving. Kounde, Ocampos, also Diego Carlos who might be 27 already but is still young. This season with Sevilla in the Champions League for sure we will all improve. I am delighted to form part of this group, but with the ambition to keep growing and improving, individually and collectively. My head is in Sevilla, we have a very exciting season ahead of us, I have many years on my contract and am very happy here. The aim is to keep improving here, and I know I can do that.”

The most obvious area where he feels he can show this improvement would be adding to his goals tally. He scored two match-winners in two of his first four games for Sevilla but despite regularly getting into threatening positions has not found the net since.

“Last year I know I did not score many,” he admits. “I believe I have a very good shot, and must take advantage of it a lot more. I’ve been working hard on arriving more in the second line, getting into the right areas, but just lacked that bit of luck. But I know if I keep working like this, the chances will come, and so will the goals.  I am one of those who wants to go day by day, game by game, that is what makes you improve as a player, and have better successes individually and collectively.”

Tonight’s return against Chelsea brings another opportunity for Jordan to put into practice what he has been working on. Given the opposition, it could be perfect timing for his first goal of the season. Lampard – and his players – cannot say they have not been warned.

[Tomo 21,681]

1 hour ago, NikkiCFC said:

I hope tonight we have trademark performance where we put a statement. In Conte second season which was not even a good season we had some amazing games like Atletico away. I hope for something like that tonight.

Even if we win some will dismiss it as not being a big game, happened last year when we did Ajax.

[ZAPHOD2319 3,867]

4 minutes ago, Tomo said:

Even if we win some will dismiss it as not being a big game, happened last year when we did Ajax.

If we win while resting players, it is a huge game for me. Makes our last a friendly. If Chelsea fans are dismissing it, I don't know what to say about that. If it is rival fans, I take that as a compliment. I think it is important to recognize that reporters have their favorite teams also. Often I see that they are very jealous of the money Roman is will to put on the front end of player deals to get them done, and get players sold after. Many team owners would never do that. I love the way our club does business, rival fans hate it.