Trevor Steven: Why Chelsea and Maurizio Sarri had the best result of the Premier League’s opening weekend
On an opening weekend that saw most Premier League results unfold as you would have expected there was one that stood out.
Chelsea’s 3-0 win over Huddersfield was no upset, but a long trip to Yorkshire still represented a tough test for a new-look Blues team and it could have turned into a difficult afternoon.
Instead it proved to be a major boost to their confidence, coming after a comprehensive defeat by Manchester City in the Community Shield six days earlier.
It was a big step forward for new coach Maurizio Sarri and the result that I think had the most impact from the first round of games.
Midfielder Jorginho, who followed Sarri from Napoli in a £57m transfer over the summer, is obviously going to be a key player for his old boss at their new club.
Against City at Wembley he had one of those days but it could have been a slight fitness issue – at this stage of the season even a few days can make lot of difference to a player’s condition.
At Huddersfield he showed what he can bring to Chelsea: good feet; appetite for tackling and challenging; breaking up and setting up; generally controlling the centre of midfield.
He also looks like he might bring out another side to N’Golo Kante. We know the Frenchman’s reading of the game is exceptional, but with Jorginho content to sit he was able to get forward and score.
I expect Chelsea to kick on now, although they will depend heavily on Alvaro Morata showing that he has found his feet after a mixed first campaign in England.
You can be a good player yet not know how to mould your game to the requirements of your surroundings and Morata needs to understand how to affect matches in the Premier League.
Work in progress
Chelsea team-mate Olivier Giroud has figured it out. The France forward is not going to beat anyone for pace so he needs to be cute. At Arsenal and now at Stamford Bridge he has honed that.
Morata showed signs that he is adapting in the win over Huddersfield, though. The former Real Madrid striker looked livelier, more purposeful and a more effective part of the team.
Chelsea remain a work in progress and I’m not sure that Sarri will be able to persist with a back four that contains David Luiz as one of his centre-backs.
David Luiz may not prove a good fit in new boss Sarri's system (Source: Getty)
I’m a big fan of the Brazilian in a back three but in a two he will give up chances every game. While he does a lot of good things to compensate, against big teams those mistakes will be punished.
They may have to stick with a back four as it’s the best fit for Jorginho. Either way, this period of tinkering is wasted time while City, who know how they want to play, cement their position at the top.
Sarri and Unai Emery, whose Arsenal team visit Stamford Bridge on Saturday, will need time and understanding to get their new teams playing as they’d like.
You only have to think back to how Sarri’s predecessor Antonio Conte started: Chelsea were going nowhere until he stumbled upon the right tactics in October – then they romped to the title.
Chelsea may hope to play the football they did at Huddersfield against Arsenal but I expect the Gunners to be dogged opponents desperate not to begin the season with consecutive defeats.
The Blues are closer to being the finished article – we still don’t know Emery’s first XI and I’m not sure he does either – but I think Arsenal will get men behind the ball and I can see it being a draw.