Chelsea 1-3 Southampton: 5 Talking Points

It was a night to remember for Southampton on Saturday evening as they romped home to a 3-1 victory at the home of the defending champions, Chelsea. Goals from Steve Davies, Southampton’s Italian international Graziano Pelle and a late goal from Saido Mane helped the Saints to a resounding away victory at Stamford Bridge. The result means Chelsea were condemned to an unprecedented fourth defeat in their first eight games of the season. Jose Mourinho’s side took the lead early in the game when Brazilian winger Willian hit home another sweet free-kick into the top corner of the Maarten Stekelenburg’s goal. However, it was all downhill for the defending champions from there on. Whilst they were lucky to stave off two vociferous penalty shouts, Southampton's relentless pressure finally paid off as Steve Davis drove in the equaliser just two minutes before the end of the first-half.The away side took the momentum from the goal into the second half and romped home the freight train in superb fashion. Saido Mane capped his quite brilliant performance with a well-taken goal, before capping off his time on the field by quite shrewdly setting up Graziano Pelle at the end of a sweeping counter attack. The Italian put the finishing touch to the brilliant move with a precise finish to give Ronald Koeman’s mean well in the clear with a two-goal lead.Here are the five biggest talking points from another tumultuous night at the Bridge for Jose Mourinho and Chelsea.

#1 Southampton were quite brilliant

The Saints came into this game at the back of some mixed results. The home loss to Manchester United were fresh in their minds but victory over Swansea would certainly have lifted their spirits and that showed today. Even after falling back early to another wonder strike by Willian from a free-kick, they roared back into the game. They never let their heads hang.

On the contrary, the team from the South coast continued playing in the sweeping style that we come to know and love them for under Ronald Koeman. They kept on building pressure on the champions and even when their genuine penalty appeals were knocked back, they came back for more.

Attitude and confidence are said to be half the battle won and there was certainly no dearth for either in the players wearing red and white at Stamford Bridge today. They defended stoutly for most parts of the game and their attacking trio of Tadic, Mane and Pelle looked dangerous every time they got on the ball. Did I mention Victor Wanyama at the middle of the park and Virgil van Dijk at the back? They were both immense as well.

This is certainly a slow start for Southampton compared to last season, but they really do look the part again this season. It is hard to see them finish anywhere below the European places if they can just get the consistency factor under check.

#2 The pressure is on Jose Mourinho

Eight points after eight games. On an average, this many points after this many games normally results in the team finishing 14th in a season. That’s not exactly what anyone had in mind going into the second international break of the season. That’s not championship form, let alone Champions League form. To be more brutally honest, Chelsea don’t look like a team that is worthy of even playing in the Europa League at the moment.

Mourinho’s team have always been built from the back and that is a big reason why this doesn’t seem like one of his teams. The forwards look toothless, the midfield is as resistant as a sieve and the backline seems in tatters.

If it’s not Branislav Ivanovic making an embarrassment of himself at the back, it’s either John Terry getting turned by Saido Mane one week or Kurt Zouma seeing himself out of position in another. Chelsea had a plan A going into the summer transfer market named John Stones. But, they didn’t seem to have a plan B, and that has come back to bite them big time.

Ivanovic is still struggling and still earning a place at the right-back spot on most nights. How? That is a question for Jose Mourinho to answer. Another stalwart of Mourinho’s reign, the man wearing 26 at his back, looks a shadow of his former self. Today was a prime example as Saido Mane, like both times last season, had a feasting day playing against the ageing Terry and a bizarre holding midfield duo of Ramires and Cesc Fabregas.

Mourinho’s team selections have been questionable to say the least and now with Chelsea struggling in 16th place, it is time for the Special One to make some bold moves. Whether it be dropping the axe on some of the more decorated names in the starting eleven or by changing things tactically, something needs to give.

The Blues have already conceded two or more goals in seven of their eight games so far this season. Compared to last season, they saw their 17th goal scored against them in January and on only six occasions did they concede two or more in a game.

#3 Result shows Southampton\'s blueprint is viable

Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne, Dejan Lovren, Morgan Schneiderlein, Tony Alderweireld, Rickie Lambert, Callum Chambers, Luke Shaw and Mauricio Pochettino. That’s the list of people that have left the club in the past two seasons from St. Mary’s and yet they find themselves with a firm foothold in the Premier League. How do they still have that kind of quality to bang heads with the big boys and terrorize the others?

Simple. 1) The appointment of a good manager: Mauricio Pochettino and then Ronald Koeman. 2) Buying a replacement and sometimes a better one. 3) A great budding youth academy.

Whilst many around the Premier League have failed to grasp the concept of appointing the right man for the job, Southampton seemed to have been spot on. Although the dismissal of Nigel Adkins might not have been a popular one, Pochettino totally changed the outlook of the club. When the Argentine did leave, the Saints got their man again, this time in the more experienced Ronald Koeman.

Graziano Pelle certainly seems to be the most prolific striker for the Saints since James Beattie. Saido Mane more than makes up for Adam Lallana’s move for greener pastures. Not even the defence seems to have taken a hit by the untimely and sometimes unpopular departures of the likes of players like Luke Shaw and Dejan Lovren respectively.

In fact. in new players likes Virgil van Djik (who was imperious at the back), Ryan Bertrand and Victor Wanyama, they really seemed to have found the right men for the jobs. Oh! And wait for Jordi Clasie to arrive as well.

And then there is the evergreen youth academy that seems to continue churning out talent by the handful. The academy which has seen the likes of Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Luke Shaw amongst others graduate and move elsewhere is still feeding the first team with its fair share of talents with Matt Targett and James Ward-Prowse already seriously in the folds of the first team.

With the set-up they have currently down in the South, the road seems to lead to rosier places.

#4 Chelsea\'s attack is toothless

Could you see the reigning PFA Player of the Year on the pitch today? The blame doesn’t totally lie on the Belgian’s shoulder for Chelsea faltering start. However, Eden Hazard is one player that the whole of Chelsea looks to. “Cometh the hour, cometh the man,” they say. The hour has certainly come, it is now time for the man to deliver the goods as well.

It was another lacklustre outing for Hazard, who is yet to open his tally in the Premier League. The more real concern? He has not looked even close to his former self this season. Nowhere to be seen are those quick bursts of acceleration to get past his man and get in dangerous places on the pitch. Nowhere are those terrorising runs that instilled fear into opponent’s hearts every time he was on the ball.

And then what about Cesc Fabregas. The Spaniard has really looked uninspired the whole of this season. Whether he played in the hole behind the striker with John Obi Mikel and Nemanja Matic behind him or in a deep playmaker’s role, Fabregas has looked rusty and oddly out of sorts.

It was the former number four at the middle of the park that dictated the tempo as well as the pace of the game for Chelsea. So far, he has really failed to produce a really authoritative performance at the centre of the park. He really needs to start earning his living.

Without Diego Costa, the Blues really do lack a cutting edge up front. Falcao seems to be Manchester United version of last season rather than the Atletico Madrid version of yesteryears. Loic Remy too seemed to be at a loss and out of sync. It’s not the same mane that rocked the Premier League in the black and white of Newcastle.

With such a huge gap between the first choice and the rest, it begs to ask you whether Chelsea really are set up right for the rest of the season.

#5 The referee had a very poor game

Let’s be honest here, Robert Madley had a stinker tonight. I know it’s quite easy to criticize the men in the thick of the action from our vantage point that consists of super slow-mos and multi-angle views of the action. However, the sheer number of wrong decisions given by Madley today was tough to digest.

While Mourinho did again slam Madley for not giving Chelsea a rightful penalty, the man for Portugal fails to realise that if Madley had truly had gotten all his decisions, right, the game might have well finished 5-2 to the Saints. The very reason that there is no media coverage about the awful game Madley had today is because, in spite of the bad decisions, the visitors came away with all three points and deservedly so.

Madley failed to give two genuine penalties. While the referee failed to spot the blatant pull on the shirt of Van Djik by Ivanovic in the opening minutes, he certainly had a good view when Ramires tripped over Saido Mane in the box but decided to keep his whistle away from his mouth. Mane was tripped again by Ivanovic in the box.

Adding to that, the call to book Saido Mane for simulation in the first half when he was again tripped over, didn’t really make things any better.