Chelsea beat Norwich: 5 things we learned as Blues brush off Roman Abramovich distraction

Chelsea fan reacts to news of Roman Abramovich sanctions

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Chelsea managed to put the club’s off-field problems to one side for 90 minutes by beating relegation-bound Norwich City 3-1 in the Premier League on Thursday night. After a day defined by the UK government’s decision to freeze Roman Abramovich’s assets, the Russian oligarch’s side showed that, despite everything, they are still an impressive football team. Goals from Trevoh Chalobah and Mason Mount put them 2-0 up after 14 minutes and, although Teemu Pukki halved the lead from the spot after a Chalobah handball, Norwich could not find another goal. Kai Havertz picked out the top corner in the 90th minute to make the points safe. Here are the five things Express Sport learned from the match at Carrow Road.

Tuchel as spokesperson

Throughout the past few weeks of chaos at Chelsea, one thing has remained a constant: Tuchel being burdened with being more than just a manager.

While the club have issued statements on its website, no other high-ranking Chelsea official has made themselves available to speak to the media, or address fans.

Tuchel has therefore been frequently forced to field questions about Abramovich, global politics, the war in Ukraine and much more.

Ahead of kick-off at Carrow Road, he once again found himself speaking about something other than football, following news that Abramovich had been sanctioned by the UK government.

“I’m not sure I am concerned but I am aware of it,” Tuchel said. “It changes almost every day. I am still happy to be here and still happy to be manager of a strong team. I know there is a lot of noise around.

“I don’t have another answer for you. Well, relief would mean that we’re struggling with all the information and news out there, it’s quite a big change from yesterday to today but yeah we can’t influence it, we didn’t cause the situation.

“In the moment it seems that business, let’s say football-wise, is more or less protected, but let’s see.”

Business as usual

Although confusion reigns away from the pitch, it was  business as usual on it, with Chelsea coming up against the Premier League’s bottom side.

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Having blocked out the “noise” Tuchel referred to, Chelsea flew out of the blocks and asserted their dominance immediately.

Chalobah headed in an early corner before Mount blasted in a second after just 14 minutes before making a statement by kissing the Chelsea badge.

They had 74 per cent of the ball in the first half and could easily have scored more and were guilty of letting Norwich back into it after the break.

Chalobah’s clear handball let Pukki reduce the deficit with a calm penalty, but despite vociferous home support, which taunted the away fans, Norwich could not force an equaliser and were made to pay by Havertz’s precise late finish. 

Havertz justifying Lukaku decision

Havertz was chosen to lead the line ahead of Romelu Lukaku once again by Tuchel and it was easy to see why.

After months of owning the central striker role, the balance has shifted in recent weeks, with Havertz now taking the role in four of the past five matches in all competitions.

The 22-year-old German has been enjoying himself, scoring once against Lille and twice against Burnley, and it seems Tuchel has now settled on playing Havertz ahead of two floating attacking midfielders.

Havertz is undeniably more versatile and mobile than Lukaku and, although Norwich are not the best gauge, he was lively once again on Thursday night.

Lukaku came on as a late substitute, but his position as second-choice became even clearer when Havertz rifled into the top corner in the closing stages.

Norwich sinking

Just six weeks ago there was genuine hope among Norwich fans that they might avoid relegation from the Premier League.

Dean Smith oversaw successive league wins over Everton and Watford in January to move the Canaries out of the drop zone.

But since then they have reverted to type, picking up one point from a possible 18, with the defeat by Chelsea their fifth in a row in the league.

There were flashes of creation, but all too often the final ball or killer finish was lacking and they needed a penalty to score. At the moment, it is only the similar struggles of their rivals which is keeping them from being cut adrift, but the five-point gap to safety seems insurmountable.

Out of contract but still performing

One of the knock-on effects of the Abramovich sanctions is that Chelsea cannot currently offer new contracts to any of their players.

The licence the club has to operate under means they can continue to pay their staff, but buying new players or renewing contracts is not allowed.

Unfortunately for Chelsea, they have Andreas Christensen, Cesar Azpilicueta and Antonio Rudiger who are set to be free agents on July 1, as things stand.

Tuchel has frequently shown his frustration over the situation and it looks almost certain to get worse now, with uncertainty potentially making up the players’ minds for them.

However, they will continue to perform. Rudiger was rested, but Christensen and Azpilicueta started against Norwich and the difficult situation was not evident.

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