![]() The only criticism of Van Dijk this season is that he has missed big chances to score against Hapoel Be’er Sheva and Inter Milan in Saints’ UEFA Europa League campaign. If John Stones is worth over $70 million, then how much is Van Dijk worth? In just over a year at Saints since joining from Celtic for $16 million and in that time he has improved massively, adding sensibility to match his mazy runs forward. ![]() ![]() He can win headers, is intelligent when reading the game and his range of passing is impressive. The 25-year-old is fast-becoming one of the most sought after central defenders in Europe and it would be a shock if some of the Premier League’s biggest teams don’t come calling in January and next summer. The Dutch international did his best to not only hold Southampton’s defense together with several well-timed tackles but he also got attacks started. If there’s a better center back in the Premier League than Van Dijk, I haven’t seen him. In a disappointing display for a Saints team who hadn’t lost a Premier League game in five previous outings, the one positive was the play of Virgil can Dijk. VAN DIJK STANDS OUT IN BIG WEEK FOR SAINTS Now, he’s not back to that level of performance consistently but he’s certainly threatening to lead another title Chelsea charge. He always looked dangerous and Saints’ right back Cuco Martina will be having nightmares about Hazard for weeks.įor Hazard, he looks like the player who steered Chelsea to the title in the 2014-15 season as man thought he was approaching a place on an immortal pedestal alongside Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Hazard curled an effort on goal after jinxing in from the left flank in the first half and then came close to getting on the end of a Marcos Alonso cross at the start of the second half and he then cut inside and curled another shot goalwards which Forster parried. He was “at it” on Sunday, as he has been for most games recently. ProSoccerTalk asked Conte last week if the new defensive style of play is impressing him more than the wins.ĥ - Eden Hazard has scored more goals in 10 league games this season than he did in 31 for Chelsea last season (4). Chelsea has now won four-straight games, scoring 13 goals and conceding zero. They starved Southampton of any space in the key areas in and around the box.įollowing their 3-0 thumping at Arsenal and the defeat against Liverpool last month, Conte switched to a 3-4-3 formation. Chelsea were picking Saints off at will and all the time they never truly looked like conceding. In the second half Victor Moses was unleashed at the back post from another Chelsea break and somehow a combination of Costa and Pedro couldn’t squeeze the ball home. In the first half Costa broke free on the break but Fraser Forster denied him. This new-look 3-4-3 formation was conducive to sitting back, asking Saints to try and break them down and then countering quickly. As soon as Chelsea went 1-0 up, it played right into their game plan. For vast swathes of this game, Southampton had the ball and the play but couldn’t break down a stubborn block of seven Chelsea players.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |