Three Takeaways As VAR Dominates Chelsea’s Victory Over Fulham

Chelsea will enter the September international break unbeaten after beating west London rivals 2–0 to kick-off the weekend’s Premier League action.

The Blues were far from their best at Stamford Bridge and were inferior during the opening 45 minutes, failing to get a foothold in the contest against their savvy opponents, who dominated in midfield.

Fulham should’ve been ahead entering the second half, and Chelsea’s second goal completely took the wind out of their sails. The hosts eventually coasted, but this was a game that perhaps manifested more concerns than positives for Enzo Maresca.

Here are the major takeaways from Chelsea’s win over Fulham.

VAR’s Poor Start to Season Continues

The tone was set on opening night of the season between Liverpool and Bournemouth, when the video assistant referee (VAR) remarkably failed to penalise Marcos Senesi’s blatant handball, which prevented Hugo Ekitiké from running through on goal.

It’s not been a good start for the technology, which continues to cause tiresome debate. At Stamford Bridge, impressive teenager Joshua King was denied a special moment by the VAR, who instructed referee Rob Jones to take a look at an incident in the build-up to King’s well-taken opener.

There was plenty of deliberation, raising questions as to whether Rodrigo Muniz’s perceived foul on Trevoh Chalobah entered the ‘clear and obvious’ threshold. A slow-mo replay made up Jones’ mind, who described Muniz’s infringement as “careless” when explaining his decision.

There was barely a complaint on the field after Muniz shook off Chalobah and allowed Sander Berge to slide King through, yet the VAR felt a need to intervene. Sure, the Fulham striker had stood on the Chelsea defender’s foot, but only after making first contact with the ball and outwitting his opponent. It was excellent centre forward play.

Marco Silva was understandably furious, and he was keen to give Jones a piece of his mind at half-time. The Fulham boss would’ve also felt hard done by for Chelsea’s second goal, when referee Jones seemingly overlooked João Pedro’s handball in the build-up to Ryan Sessegnon’s penalised handball, which stopped Chalobah’s cross.

The real issue was how long it took the referee to reach a decision, and you can’t help but feel that the technology spoiled this contest. It wasn’t a fun watch.

Chelsea Have a Striker Issue

Debate will rage over player welfare in the wake of Liam Delap’s hamstring injury, just over a month after Chelsea completed their successful Club World Cup campaign in the United States.

A simple channel run was the summer addition’s last action of the contest merely 15 minutes in. Delap clutched his left hamstring right away, and although there was an attempt to walk it off, the striker eventually sat himself down on the Stamford Bridge turf and awaited his withdrawal.

Chelsea will hope the Englishman will soon be able to return after the international break, because Maresca’s options up top are currently slim. Instead of utilising João Pedro up top, teenager Tyrique George was tasked with performing Delap’s role.

The Cobham graduate has been linked with a late move in the window, but Delap’s injury and his capacity to fill in as a No. 9 mean Chelsea will surely retain George.

The club have opted to part ways with Nicolas Jackson, while Christopher Nkunku has joined AC Milan. Given how much they’ve spent since BlueCo got involved, it’s pretty remarkable that this is the current state of their striker depth chart.

João Pedro’s Productive Start Continues

The Brazilian was deemed a hard player to profile when Chelsea signed him from Brighton & Hove Albion midway through the Club World Cup. He’s somewhere between a No. 9 and 10, but he’s shown at the start of his Blues career that he can perform both roles to a high level.

Pedro is the best No. 9 Chelsea have on their books, and he’ll likely start up top after the international break, with Delap out and once Cole Palmer is back. He didn’t have it all his own way on Saturday, but he grew into the contest in the second half.

He was initially frustrated by Sander Berge, who kept a watchful eye on him and didn’t give him any room to breathe in the first half. However, Pedro rounded off a quiet 45 minutes with a headed finish from Fernández’s corner, and he’s now recorded four goal contributions through three league outings this term. He’s also now one of four players to score at least five goals in their first five Chelsea games.

Pedro’s no physical behemoth, but a canny operator in the box who uses his body superbly. Pedro can do a little bit of everything, and in the absence of Palmer, Chelsea desperately need the Brazilian’s ingenuity.