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Southampton’s left side attacks & pace upfront frustrates Chelsea

Then, Mane’s pace startled Chelsea’s leggy centre-back pairing in the first half, and it was unsurprising to see Koeman replicate his successful initial approach. Likewise, with Shane Long’s pace upfront, Southampton continued to expose the frailties Chelsea currently possess. The other main danger zone existed down the left, as the away side often exploited space behind the advanced Branislav Ivanovic.

Subsequent to Diego Costa’s opener in the tenth minute, Southampton pushed forward and were the better side for the remainder of the first half. Ryan Bertrand’s pass into half space saw Dusan Tadic run off Nemanja Matic and cut the ball back to Mane, but Thibaut Courtois pushed his shot aside. Shortly afterwards, a simple combination between Mane and Victor Wanyama saw the former drive past Ivanovic and Matic and get clipped down to earn a penalty that Tadic coolly converted.

Mane’s growth in a central role has offered Koeman flexibility, and his diagonal runs into space behind the back four posed several issues. On the wing, the Senegalese international’s impact is limited in comparison to the space he receives in central areas, which enables increased attacking opportunities. The 22-year-old’s threat was vividly expressed through the match-high 6 fouls suffered, which resulted in three bookings.

Chelsea was also vulnerable down their right flank against Southampton’s transitional attacks. Ivanovic’s advanced positioning saw Tadic and Long drift into space in the left channel, and Bertrand bypassed Willian on a few occasions to combine with the Serbian midfielder to deliver dangerous crosses into the box. The pace in central areas tormented Chelsea’s sluggish defence, as the away side broke into legitimate goal-scoring chances on the left, but stellar Courtois saves and poor finishing ensured the score-line remained levelled.

The Blues were equally underwhelming in the opening half, creating minimal half-chances from hopeful crosses into Costa. The Spanish internationa endured another subdued afternoon as he was wasteful in possession due to proactive pressing by former teammate Toby Alderweireld. Chelsea’s midfield duo of Cesc Fabregas also struggled in the opening half, failing to cope with Saints’ proactive pressing in central areas.

Earlier this season, Juan Mata and Marouane Fellaini harried Matic and Fabregas in possession, thwarting their influence and depriving Chelsea of creativity from deep. Wanyama and Morgan Schneiderlin adopted similar roles — forcing Fabregas to constantly concede possession — with the latter commanding throughout, recording a match-high 21 ball recoveries, 10 successful tackles and nine interceptions. The Saints full-backs tight marking forced Willian and Hazard into central areas, whereas Tadic and Davis compressed space in midfield by sitting narrow, but also closing down Ivanovic and Cesar Azpilicueta.

Saints’ threat in transition was solely through Mane in the second half, as Matic was fortunate not to be sent off after the 22-year-old intercepted Ivanovic’s poor throw and was fouled near the box. Chelsea’s passing tempo vastly improved in the second half, but Saints’ pressing decreased as they dropped deeper, thus enabling the Blues’ attacking players freedom in the final third.

Wayward finishing and Forster’s key second half saves to deny Oscar and Loic Remy ensured Saints earned a vital away point. Ramires offered pace to cope with Mane’s threat on the break, but neither Remy nor Cuadrado received enough time to shift the pattern of the match.

Koeman deserves credit for another positive away performance against a title contender: Long and Mane tormented Chelsea’s centre-backs, and exploited space behind Ivanovic to create legitimate goal-scoring opportunities. Fatigue and dips in form have stalled Chelsea’s performances in recent weeks, but this was about Southampton’s defensive solidity, and imperious work ethic out of possession — particularly pressing Matic and Fabregas in midfield.

Similar to their loss in midweek against PSG, Southampton has provided an ideal template in how to fluster Chelsea.

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