Ben Chilwell praised his Chelsea teammates after their performance in Saturday’s all-action draw against Arsenal.
Many people had written Chelsea off going into this weekend’s Premier League fixture at home to Arsenal, but they showed their quality with a spirited display.
Eventually, the Blues had to settle for a point at Stamford Bridge with the 2-2 draw.
Cole Palmer and Mykhailo Mudryk were on the scoresheet for the Blues before Arsenal’s late comeback, with Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard netting for the visitors.
Incidentally, Jamie Redknapp said Palmer was the best player on the pitch via Sky Sports’ Main Event channel (6:28pm, 21 October).
Chelsea on the rise
Yes, throwing away a two-goal lead is going to leave any team disappointed. Let’s remember that Chelsea outplayed Arsenal for large parts and stretched their unbeaten run to four matches, though.
Blues left-back Ben Chilwell, 26, is currently unavailable for his side because of a hamstring problem.
Chelsea’s vice-captain was extremely proud of his teammates after the Arsenal result.
Chilwell posted on his Instagram story: “Deserved more. Boys were brilliant tonight.”
Ben Chilwell replacement shines
It was a new-look defence for Chelsea at home to Arsenal, with a back four playing together for the first time.
It was Marc Cucurella slotting into the left-back position, while Levi Colwill shifted across to centre-back. They were joined by Thiago Silva and Malo Gusto in the backline.
Most would agree that Chilwell is the first-choice left-back at the club when fit and firing, but Cucurella’s recent emergence can’t be overlooked.
The 25-year-old defender put in a gutsy performance at left-back against Arsenal, especially against a talent like Bukayo Saka. He’s done a great job covering at right-back recently, too.
It’s refreshing to see some faces seize the new chance given to them since Pochettino arrived in the manager’s dugout over the summer. For certain, Cucurella has now put a great claim to stay in the starting line-up to build on some encouraging displays.