UEFA Super Cup Chelsea 1: Atletico 4

Lineups:

Both started in their usual 4-2-3-1. The teams were as expected with the only surprise coming in Terry being on the bench. Atleti gave a start to Koke, the 20 year old rather that Raul who is the more experienced player in that role behind the striker.

Atleti 4-2-3-1

Chelsea 4-2-3-1

Early stages:

Chelsea had a good spell of possession at the start but looked clueless on how to penetrate the Atletico defence.Atleti on the other hand looked far more at ease and seemed very well prepared. The front four of Adrian Lopez, Koke and Arda Turan and Falcao are upront are highly underrated and up against Chelsea's more expensive fromt four, they held their own in a most impressive manner. The first half belonged to Falcao whose hat trick put Atleti so far ahead that the result was never in doubt. Atleti's two holders or defensive midfielders, Mario Suarez and Gabi completely dominated Chelsea's front three of Hazard, Mata and Ramires. Chelsea rarely had any chances and Falcao always looked like scoring, he hit the post in the 4th minute when the left back, Filippe Luis  beat Ivanovic with ease to put in a fine cross .

Goals:

Fantastic Falcao

The goals were both a product of shocking defending and classy finishing by Atleti. For the first goal, Mikel lost the ball to Mario Suarez who wasted no time in pushing up the pitch to Koke, who played a delightful through ball for Falcao. Ivanovic had pushed too high up the pitch and there was simply no one of the right side to keep up with Falcao. The two centre halves, Cahill and Luiz were level with Falcao who lobbed it perfectly. Luiz may have done better if Ivanovic had covered the right side but as things turned out, he couldn't figure out whether to track Falcao or protect his goal.

Good Enough?

The second one came with a poor goal kick by Petr Cech, which allowed Gabi to win his aerial duel with Hazard and get the ball to Koke who played a very neat one two with Adrian Lopez and set up Falcao, who made it two with a perfect chip. Cole was in position, but may have done better in trying to block Falcao's shot.

The third one came just before the break when Atleti broke brilliantly from a corner. The driving run by Arda Turan was instrumental as he laid it off for Falcao who beat Ramires with ease to slot past Cech.

The fourth one was a perfect example of how nothing went well for Chelsea, a free kick was poorly defended and the ball fell for Miranda to dink over Cech. Cahill got there and should have stopped it but instead managed to help it on its way. Chelsea pulled one back from a Lampard corner when the ball fell kindly to Cahill who whacked it past Courtois.

Atleti's strategy:

Atletico under Diego Simeone could claim to be one of the best counter attacking sides in Europe, almost as good as their city rivals Real. They may have lost Diego, but Koke, Turan, Adrian and Falcao are as good a front four as one could find. They break with pace and finish well with Falcao.
Their play was reminscient of their strategy in the Europa League final when they beat Athletic Bilbao 3-0 allowing the oppostion to possess the ball and pressing minimally. This allows them to conserve their energy for when they break out and counter attack in devastatingly effective fashion

Chelsea's problems:

Chelsea had serious issues with their play. The defence was in shambles, Ivanovic and Ramires on the right were simply not good enough in dealing with Fillipe Luis and Adrian. Cahill and Luiz were simply not good enough as they were caught out far too often. Luiz in particular did not look the 30 million price tag that he came with.For probably the fifth or sixth most expensive defender of all time, he has simply not shown any quality when considering the illustrious company he is in. He has had enough time to adapt but hasn't done so. Terry is steadily in decline and this leaves two reliable centre halves in Cahill and Ivanovic. Cesar Azpilicueta, the Spanish right back has been signed and this may mean Ivanovic doesn't have to play on the right anymore, leaving him available for the centre back spot.

Lampard and Mikel were poor as the holders and were caught out far too easily. Chelsea missed the no nonsense presence of Essien and Meireles who despite being unflashy are very effective when a job needs doing. One wonders if Luiz could be converted to this role, seeing his bility on the ball and poor positional discipline as of now which is not good enough to be a completely reliable centre back at present, especially the European Champions.

We may see him getting some time over there. Also, there was a general lack of intensity and it just seemed that Atleti wanted it far more. This was summed up in the 84th minute, when Filippe Luis put in a lung bursting run on the left, mocking a tired Ivanovic and testing Cech with a shot. Chelsea's on loan goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois may be Cech's replacement sooner than we think. For all of Cech's CL heroics, his consistency has certainly waned and a challenger for his No 1 jersey may help him regain his status as one of the best in Europe.

Atletico Madrid:

Despite their mountain of debt, Atleti are still one of the most talented teams in Spain and incredibly pleasing to watch with their counter attacking philosopy executed to perfection. One is reminded of the exquisite manner in which Arsenal's Invincibles countered in unison with Ljunberg, Bergkamp, Pires and Henry as the striker. Falcao may not be present much longer a s he is simply too good a player and surely, a bid will arrive for him sooner or later. However, in Emre, they have a decent replacement.

Conclusion:

Chelsea looked bereft of ideas and certainly not a team full of playmakers. Atleti looked more intense, fitter and had a tactical plan that they executed to perfection unlike their Chelsea counterparts. Chelsea had their chance to prove that their CL win wasn't just a fluke but they blew this opportunity with a nondescript, almost flaky performance.