Frank Lampard And Chelsea Record Their First Major Win, Beat Barca 2-1

Frank Lampard and Chelsea managed to record a win against Barcelona today, in their friendly international match held in Saitama, Japan. The winner of the Europa League was better than the Spanish champions beating them 2-1, with Tammy Abraham and Ross Barkley scoring for the Blues. On the other side, Ivan Rakitic was the sole scorer for Blaugrana, but that goal was beautiful.

This is the first big victory for Frank Lampard since he took over his former club. His guys were better than Barcelona, who appeared without Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, which can’t diminish the solid performance of the London club. The fans had the opportunity to see Antoine Griezmann debuting, but the French international had to go out at the halftime. Previously, Chelsea’s midfielder Jorginho had one tough tackle on him, which frightened Ernesto Valverde forcing him to pull out his most expensive signing.

Chelsea drew the first blood in the 34th minute when Tammy Abraham scored a goal following Jorginho’s assist. The Italian snatched the ball from Sergio Busquets and quickly sent it to Abraham who had no problems to bear Barcelona’s goalie Ter Stegen. It was the only goal in the opening 45 minutes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgP0nBoddBg

Barca had a few chances of their own in the first half, but we need to stress out that Chelsea had better. Abraham missed one from just a few yards, but he redeemed later. In general, the 21-year-old played very good and was a constant threat to Barca’s defense. Lampard spoke highly of him following the event.

“I won’t get carried away with anything about this performance. Tammy’s a goalscorer, and he’s hungry for goals. Now it’s his time to prove it for Chelsea. To get his goal will put him in good stead,” the Blues coach stated.

Ernesto Valverde changed the whole team at the break, sending another newcomer on the pitch, Frenkie De Jong. That changed things, and the Spanish team became more aggressive and fluid upfront. However, that didn’t change the result in their favor; furthermore, it was Chelsea who doubled the lead.

Ross Barkley accepted the pass at the edge of the box in the 81st minute and aimed for the lower right corner of Neto’s goal. It was a perfect score for the English national team member.

Some 10 minutes lates, Ivan Rakitic posted his name on the scoresheet with a fantastic strike from some 21-22 yards. His rocket went past Kepa and ended in the far upper corner of his net. It was really a beauty.

Lampard finishes by saying this tour has been a huge success and that Japan has been good for the team and the club. Now, the hard work continues back home, but first, the players will have a couple of days off…#CFCinJapan

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 23, 2019

Chelsea deserved to win this one, and the Blues showed that they have a nice potential despite what many believe. This team is doubted by many, especially after Eden Hazard decided to leave and join Real Madrid. Plus, they also have a transfer ban, which prevented them from adding players in this transfer window. Nevertheless, if Chelsea continues to play like this throughout the upcoming campaign, it is going to be a nice season for all their fans. It is up to them now to work and perfect their skills, which is what Lampard said after the game.

“Now we just have to keep working,” club’s legend said in an interview. “In terms of the workload, the players have to get used to it now. I’ve set the standard of how I want them to work.”

With the young squad and a young coach, the Blues have solid potential to develop into one of the powerhouses of European football.