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Chelsea lost 1-0 to Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, September 6.
Dinamo and Chelsea faced off in the first game of this season's edition of the Champions League. The hosts played in the UEFA Europa League last year and made their way through the qualifying rounds. The Blues, on the other hand, won the competition in 2021 and were knocked out of the quarterfinals by eventual champions Real Madrid in 2022.
The game was bound to be exciting as the visitors have made somewhat of a shaky start to the season. Thomas Tuchel handed newcomer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang his debut.
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Chelsea made a composed start to the game, trying to keep possession and progress forward with a patient build-up. However, they were pegged back by Dinamo Zagreb just 13 minutes into the game. Bruno Petkovic played a timed pass into space, which Mislav Orsic latched onto. He then finished past Kepa with a deft finish to make it 1-0.
The visitors dominated possession but found it difficult to break down Dinamo's rigid defensive lines. Mason Mount and Kai Havertz started positively, keeping Chelsea's offense going with their passing and movement. The Blues continued to dominate possession but failed to arrive in Dinamo's penalty area.
All of the Blues' hard work towards the end of the first period was in vain as Dinamo Zagreb defended heroically. They went into the break holding onto their narrow one-goal lead.
Chelsea continued to dominate possession and created the majority of the chances as they came out for the second half. Tuchel made a flurry of substitutions in order to spark a change in the game, as well as with one eye on their game against Fulham in the Premier League in a few days. Hakim Ziyech was brought on for Cesar Azpilicueta at the break.
Jorginho and Armando Broja soon entered the fray but failed to make a telling impact as Chelsea trailed Dinamo. The hosts' custodian Dominik Livakovic was tested several times but withstood the pressure in goal. He was aided by his backline of Dino Peric, Josip Sutalo and Stefan Ristovski, all of whom played incredible games.
A whopping eight minutes of stoppage time was added at the end of the second period. Chelsea continued to dominate possession and were afforded a chance to score from a late free-kick. Ziyech attempted a lackluster strike goalwards, which did not even make it past the wall.
Dinamo Zagreb held on to secure a heroic 1-0 win over Chelsea. That said, let's take a look at the five major talking points from the game.
#5. Chelsea have a severe lack of creativity in midfield
Despite starting with Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic, Kai Havertz and Raheem Sterling behind Aubameyang, Chelsea failed to create chances. They created zero big chances over the course of the game, but hit the woodwork once. Considering they kept the ball for 68% of the time, their output was abysmal for a team of their stature.
#4. Mislav Orsic loves a goal against a team from London
Orsic was the talk of the town when Dinamo downed Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 in the Europa League last season. Spurs won 2-0 at home and took a comfortable lead to Croatia. However, Orsic netted a stunning hat-trick to knock the traveling Londoners out of the tournament by a 3-2 score on aggregate.
He scored what turned out to be a winning goal tonight as well, making it four goals in two games against teams from London.
#3. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang needs to be trusted
Aubameyang was handed his first appearance as a Blue against Dinamo Zagreb tonight. However, he failed to receive the service that he often got over the course of his career as a prolific striker.
The Gabonese only had 20 touches on the ball despite being the lone striker playing for almost an hour. This shows the midfield has yet to gauge his style of runs and how he prefers receiving the ball. However, once they click, Aubameyang could be a weapon for this particular Blues side who enjoy playing on the counter attack.
#2. Time may be running out for Thomas Tuchel
Despite spending over a quarter billion of the Queen's finest, Chelsea have made what could be considered a disappointing start to the campaign. They had already lost two of their six matches in the Premier League prior to their defeat tonight.
Additionally, his in-game management seems to be poor as well. Tuchel has made some questionable changes at key moments of the game.
#1. The magic of the Champions League is well and truly alive!
It is safe to say that very few expected Dinamo to walk away with a win, let alone score a goal against one of Europe's best club sides. However, they managed the game brilliantly, making key changes at the right time to keep the momentum in their favor.
This game is a good example of why no game in the Champions League can be taken lightly. Every team has earned their right to be in the competition and will be eager to do their very best.
