4 things we learned from Chelsea's humiliating pre-season defeat to Celtic

Chelsea endured a nightmare second outing of their pre-season tour in the United States as they were thumped 4-1 by Celtic in Indiana.

Growing pains should always be expected at the start of a new manager's reign, but there will undoubtedly be plenty of concerns over the first 180 minutes of football played by Enzo Maresca's Blues across the pond.

Having drawn 2-2 with League One side Wrexham to kick-off their tour, Chelsea were put to the sword by Brendan Rodgers' side on Saturday night.

Here are four takeaways from their humbling defeat.

1. Growing pains are to be expected

Chelsea are starting their third rebuild since Todd Boehly entered the fray and, although the Blues have previously hired two control-oriented coaches in Graham Potter and Mauricio Pochettino, some growing pains must be expected at the start of Maresca's reign.

The Pep Guardiola acolyte has so far shown little sign of adaptation in a head coaching role. Maresca loves a 3-2-5 possession structure which sees the right-back drift into midfield to, in theory, provide more passing options in the build-up and offer a greater central presence to protect against the counter-attack.

Such a configuration worked a treat with Leicester in the second tier and Maresca has so far shown no signs of deviating away from his go-to. Whether Chelsea have the profile of players for Maresca's Plan A to work at his apex remains to be seen, but some improvement should undoubtedly be seen once the remainder of his first-team squad returns to action.

The manner of their defeat in Indiana brought premature cries of a Frank Lampard interim return and, while there should be concerns over the start of Chelsea's tour, it'd be unfair to assess the new manager until the likes of Cole Palmer are back to bail him out.

2. What must Trevoh Chalobah be thinking?

Trevoh Chalobah is not yet a world-class centre-back, but how many better do Chelsea have on their books in the wake of Thiago Silva's exit?

The academy graduate, despite enjoying a fine end to last season, has been left at home in order to hasten a sale. He doesn't want to leave, yet the financial benefits that arrive from the exit of an academy star are seemingly too good for Clearlake to turn down. That's modern-day football.

Maresca does have an abundance of options in Chalobah's position, yet none covered themselves in glory on Saturday night. Sure, there was a brief uptick once Tosin Adarabioyo entered the fray in the second half and Chelsea enjoyed more periods of sterile possession, but the Blues' defensive work was otherwise abysmal.

The backline wasn't helped by a confused structure ahead of them which allowed Celtic to counter at will. The aggressive defensive line was penetrated time and time again, with Chelsea's two starting centre-backs doing a woeful job of covering the inside channels.

Wesley Fofana allowed Kyogo Furuhashi to ghost in and tap home Celtic's second in the first half, while Benoit Badiashile's error directly led to the Scottish side's third before they broke in behind all too easily again to run up the score with 11 minutes to go.

It was a calamitous defensive showing all around, one that Chalobah surely would have enjoyed back home.

3. Robert Sanchez battling to retain #1 status

It was a difficult debut season for Sanchez at Stamford Bridge as injuries and a drop in form saw him lose his starting berth to fellow new arrival Djordje Petrovic. The Serbian shot-stopper offered a steady hand for much of 2023/24, but it was clear he is not the long-term answer.

New management has handed Sanchez another opportunity. There were early reports that Maresca was an admirer of the former Brighton goalkeeper, but Sanchez's status between the sticks for 2024/25 is once again under threat with Chelsea poised to confirm the arrival of Villarreal shot-stopper Filip Jorgensen.

Jorgensen is no world-beater, however, and there's certainly a chance Sanchez enters the new season as Maresca's preferred option. Against Celtic, the Spaniard was responsible for ensuring Chelsea weren't four behind at the break as he made several excellent saves to deny Furuhashi.

His second-half effort wasn't quite as impressive with Michael Johnston poking the ball through his legs for Celtic's fourth. Still, Sanchez may well have exited the contest as Chelsea's standout performer.

4. Are Brendan Rodgers' Celtic the real deal?

There was a sense of unfulfillment at Celtic Park last season despite Brendan Rodgers overseeing a domestic double upon his return to the club. Supporters had fallen in love with predecessor Ange Postecoglou and although Rodgers, who spent three years at Celtic between 2016 and 2019, oversaw notable success last season, the club's efforts didn't quite strike a chord with an expectant fanbase.

However, the signs this summer point towards a prosperous 2024/25 for the Scottish giants. They may be well ahead in their pre-season preparations than Manchester City and Chelsea - Saturday's win was their fifth outing of the summer - but there's nonetheless been plenty to admire.

Rodgers' outfit appear in mid-season form. Coherently structured, Celtic have been able to bypass opposing presses and suffocate teams themselves. They've played some wonderful stuff this summer, with Matt O'Riley, the subject of rife transfer talk this window, impressing against Chelsea and Furuhashi, as he often does, finding himself on the scoresheet.

It's an exciting time to be a Celtic fan - even if there are mitigating circumstances for their two most recent victories.

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