Chelsea, with all the comings and goings at Stamford Bridge this summer, are undoubtedly a work in progress, but questions spring to mind more readily than answers. There are no signs of obvious solutions to the problematic pairings of Frank Lampard and Michael Ballack and Didier Drogba and Shevchenko — no matter how promising the Ukrainian's performance yesterday — but the deeper mystery is why José Mourinho should choose to rebuild a team who have been so dominant for the past two seasons. The Portuguese predicted his side could be even worse when they face Manchester City in their opening Premiership match on Sunday.
“Liverpool deserved to win, but a competition over ten months is different to a game between team A and B,” Mourinho said. “If I play against them tomorrow it will be difficult, but over the season we can have them. We have ten months to work and improve, although next week we could be 40 per cent as my players are away. If something happens in the next two weeks, we lose a match or two points, it's not a drama. That's why I prefer to play over ten months.”
Mourinho has rightly bemoaned the fact that the World Cup has left him only three weeks and four friendlies to prepare for the new season, but many of his problems are of his own making. The lack of quality full backs in his squad is looking ever-more negligent, even accounting for Ashley Cole's imminent arrival, with Gérémi and Paulo Ferriera both exposed yesterday, and the task of accommodating Lampard and Ballack while retaining some width is giving everyone who watches them a headache. They did little else but pick up bookings in the 26 minutes they played together yesterday, before Germany's captain limped off with a hip injury that will be examined today.
With Chelsea stagnating, at least in the short term, Rafael Benítez appears to have used the summer to take Liverpool forward, adding the crucial ingredients of pace and a greater goal threat to the most resilient team in the country. Mohamed Sissoko's dominance of midfield enabled Mark González and Jermaine Pennant to rampage down the flanks, while the match-winning Crouch also appears a better player for his mixed World Cup experience.
“I'm happy with the performance of my team,” Benítez said. “It's always important to win against the top teams and it's more important than the trophy. Last season we had a problem as [Djibril] Cissé was our only player with any pace. Now we have [Craig] Bellamy, González, Pennant and other players who can run into space. We have lots of options. That' s why I say my team is better than last season.”
Buoyed by such belief, Liverpool started strongly and deservedly took the lead through a perfectly worked counter-attack. Lampard's ninth-minute corner fell to John Arne Riise on the edge of his own area and the Norway international ran and ran. By the time John Terry approached him at the other end of the pitch, it was too late, with Riise unleashing a powerful shot from 30 yards that eluded Carlo Cudicini. The Italian goalkeeper made amends after 42 minutes, saving well from Luis García after a cross from González, but with Petr Cech in the wings, it could be his last mistake for a while.
With little possession to play with, Chelsea were reduced to knocking long balls forward in hope rather than expectation, although with Shevchenko chasing them, it is not an entirely forlorn tactic. After several tame shots, he showed his true self just before half-time, collecting an angled chip from Lampard cleanly on the chest before side-footing calmly past José Manuel Reina to score his first goal for Chelsea. Roman Abramovich looked suitably chuffed with his new toy.
Shevchenko, having broken his duck, looked most likely to shatter the stalemate, heading Lampard's corner narrowly wide in the 57th minute, but it was a rather less heralded striker who settled the game. With the supporters preparing themselves for another unwanted penalty shoot-out, Bellamy had other ideas, collecting the ball on the left byline and picking out Crouch, who escaped the attentions of Terry to head the winner.
The new England captain will hope his performances improve this season and, much like Chelsea as a whole, he will have to.