Chelsea 3-0 Aston Villa: 5 talking points as ruthless Blues continue their unbeaten start to the season | Premier League 2021-22

#3 Romelu Lukaku made his mark at Stamford Bridge

Lukaku's goals were his first-ever at Stamford Bridge

It appears Romelu Lukaku got the memo about Premier League players scoring on their return to their home grounds. After Cristiano Ronaldo’s brace at Old Trafford earlier, Lukaku promptly matched him by registering his first-ever goal at Stamford Bridge.

10 years and 15 days after playing his first home game for Chelsea, Romelu Lukaku has finally scored for the Blues at the Bridge.Dreams do come true. 😍 pic.twitter.com/1ohXr6HIdJ

— William Hill (@WilliamHill) September 11, 2021

Having made his first appearance at Stamford Bridge over a decade ago, Lukaku finally got on the scoresheet in his 15th appearance. The boyhood Chelsea fan, who was overcome with emotion after scoring, is sure to repeat the feat many more times in the future.

Interestingly enough, Kovacic’s effort was his first goal at home for Chelsea as well.

#4 Villa experimented with a new formation in the post-Grealish era

Dean Smith (R) seems to be favouring a 3-5-2 formation for Villa this season

Aston Villa are approaching life without their talismanic playmaker Jack Grealish with a new-look formation this season. Loan signing Axel Tuanzebe has slotted into their three-at-the-back system, with Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings leading a two-pronged attack.

Despite the final result, Villa gave an excellent account of themselves and were unlucky not to have something to show for their efforts. Dean Smith’s men more than held their own against formidable opponents and gave the Villa fans much cause to be excited for the future.

#5 Chelsea defence continues to set the standard

Mendy was in excellent form in goal for Chelsea

The successes enjoyed by Chelsea under Thomas Tuchel have been built on the rock-solid formation provided by their superb back line. The likes of Edouard Mendy, Thiago Silva, Antonio Rudiger, Cesar Azpilicueta, and Andreas Christensen have made Chelsea very hard to score against.

Edou. 👌🔵 2-0 🟣 pic.twitter.com/zkojz6t0G3

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) September 11, 2021

The Blues’ defensive prowess was on full display against a spirited Aston Villa side who tested them from the first whistle to the last. While Mendy pulled off a string of excellent saves, Silva and Rudiger matched him with a number of important tackles and interceptions.

Chelsea remain the only team in the league not to have conceded in open play, thus setting the bar extremely high for their competitors.