LONDON —
Chelsea suffered their first Premier League defeat
this season as Edouard Mendy’s embarrassing blunder put Leeds on course for a
3–0 win, while Brighton condemned West Ham to a third successive loss on
Sunday.
اضافة اعلان
Mendy’s costly
mistake was the catalyst for Chelsea’s shocking implosion at Elland Road as
Brenden Aaronson netted after catching the goalkeeper taking too long in possession.
Rodrigo’s fourth
goal in three games this season doubled Leeds’ advantage before half-time.
Jack Harrison
completed Leeds’ first win over Chelsea since 2002 and their biggest against
their old rivals since 1995.
Adding to
Chelsea’s misery, their Senegal defender
Kalidou Koulibaly was sent off for a
second booking after tripping Joe Gelhardt in the 84th minute.
Unbeaten after
three games, Leeds sit second in the table as boss Jesse Marsch builds on the
momentum established during the club’s successful fight to avoid relegation
last season.
In contrast,
Chelsea find themselves in the unusual position of sitting below their less
glamorous west London neighbors Fulham and Brentford in the table.
Thomas Tuchel’s
side have taken four points from their first three games and the German will be
concerned at the way his expensively rebuilt team faded after Mendy’s howler.
Marsch had
cheekily suggested Tuchel’s one-match touchline ban for his clashes with
Tottenham manager Antonio Conte last weekend should have been imposed in time
for Chelsea’s trip to Yorkshire.
Tuchel might have
wished he could be anywhere but Elland Road as Chelsea collapsed.
Raheem Sterling
should have given Chelsea the lead inside the first 60 seconds, but the
forward’s penetrating run ended with a shot that curled wide from 12 yards.
Sterling did find
the back of the net after 15 minutes, only for an offside flag to correctly
rule out what would have been the former Manchester City star’s first goal for
Chelsea.
Mason Mount’s low
strike forced a save from Illan Meslier as Chelsea looked set to dominate.
But Mendy gifted
Leeds the opening goal in the 33rd minute when the Chelsea keeper took too long
to clear
Thiago Silva’s backpass before attempting a suicidal turn that allowed
Aaronson to steal the ball and tap into the empty net.
Not for the first
time during his Chelsea career, Mendy had been caught in possession and the
embarrassed Senegal keeper held his head in frustration as Aaronson sprinted
away to celebrate.
It was the US
winger’s first goal for Leeds since his close-season move from Red Bull
Salzburg.
Chelsea were
shell-shocked and, just four minutes later, Mendy was beaten again as Rodrigo
rose above Reece James to glance a superb header into the far corner from
Harrison’s free-kick.
Encapsulating
Chelsea’s meltdown,
Marc Cucurella wasted a chance to reduce the deficit when
the left-back shot tamely wide with the goal at his mercy.
Harrison put the
result beyond doubt in the 69th minute when he poked home from close-range
after Rodrigo knocked down Daniel James’ cross.
At the London
Stadium, Brighton added to West Ham’s woes with an impressive 2–0 victory.
Read more Sports
Jordan News
.jpg)
.jpg)
