He Sevilla debuted in the Champions with a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge against him Chelsea, the other favorite to qualify for the round of 16 in Group E. It was not a bad debut for Julen Lopetegui. Sevilla did not wrinkle at any time and if something must be attributed to him it is that he had little gunpowder upstairs.
Chelsea, despite being the team that has strengthened the most in the last transfer window (Havertz, Timo Werner, Ziyech or Theo Silva, among others), disappointed. He did not give the feeling of being a contender for the title. If anyone tried to be the protagonist at all times and go for the game, it was Sevilla, whose control of the ball was especially intense in the first half.
Very balanced
Deaf fight in midfield
The game was very close, with a muffled fight in the center of the field. The scoring chances came by dropper, on a quite placid night for the goalkeepers. The clearest of the first half was aborted by Mendy with a good head-to-head almost point-blank from Gudelj.
Havertz rolls on London floors (POOL / EFE)
If there is a Spanish team that prints a high rhythm to its matches, it is Sevilla. He did not have much overflow on the wings because Chelsea closes very well. With midfielders like N’Golo Kanté or Pulisic, Chelsea fights you to the bone on every inch of the pitch.
Injury
Sevilla lost Sergi Gómez after half an hour
After the first half hour, Sevilla suffered the setback of Sergi Gómez’s injury. Since Koundé was out of Covid positive, Lopetegui had to improvise by lowering Fernando to the central position. Before the break there was another chance for Sevilla, a cross from Acuña and a header from Suso that went to the side of the net from the goalkeeper who replaced Kepa Arrizabalaga.
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The second part started with the same players. Chelsea initially seemed a little more determined to attack. Zouma headed a corner into the hands of Bono and then the locals requested a penalty by Lucas Ocampos in the area, a maximum penalty that the referee did not grant or the VAR intervened.
In the 58th minute, Lopetegui refreshed the team with the change of Oliver Torres for Suso. From the outset, the game’s script remained the same, with Chelsea more focused on the rival area but without Sevilla suffering any kind of stress. To give his team more punch, Lampard introduced Moroccan Ziyech and Mateo Kovacic, the attacking midfielder and former Real Madrid player.
Best occasion
A great volley from Joan Jordán went high
The effect of Chelsea was wearing out little by little, as the minutes passed. After halfway through the second half, Sevilla returned to take control of the ball and the game. Sevilla had it in a corner kick that Rakitic threw and Joan Jordán, with a volley, was about to score a flag goal and that would have been one of the best of the day in this Champions League. The Catalan’s shot went over the crossbar for very little.
The last occasion was again for the Spanish team, but Luuk De Jong was not fine in the auction either. In the end, both teams seemed satisfied with the draw, in the other group match Rennes and Krasnodar tied (1-1). Nobody gets an advantage.
Datasheet
0 – Chelsea: Mendy; Chilwell, Zouma, Silva, James; Kanté, Jorginho (Kovacic, m.65), Havertz; Pulisic (Hudson-Odoi, m.91), Mount (Ziyech, m.62) y Werner (Abraham, m.91).
0 – Sevilla: Bonus; Acuña, Diego Carlos, Gómez (Jordán, m.33), Navas; Gudelj, Fernando, Rakitic (Vázquez, m.80); Ocampos, De Jong (En-Nesyri, m.80) and Suso (Torres, m.58).
Referee: Davide Masa (ITA) admonished Jorginho (m.14), Mount (m.36) and Chilwell (m.64) by the locals, and Acuña (m.43) and Jordán (m.87) by part of visitors.
Incidents: Match corresponding to the first day of the group stage of the Champions League played at the Stamford Bridge stadium (London) behind closed doors.
