Chelsea bested London rivals Arsenal 2-1 today in a preseason friendly staged at the Emirates. Blues boss Thomas Tuchel started a strong side that featured Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech and Kai Havertz up front in a 3-4-3 formation.
Werner and Havertz, the two Germans who moved over last summer transfer window and struggled in their debut season at Stamford Bridge, were involved in getting the scoring started. Watch below as Werner set up Havertz for the first goal of the game. (For the news and notes from the Arsenal side, go here)
https://twitter.com/LDNFootbalI/status/1421840536462319619
If the west London side can get this two going, then it really bodes well for the season ahead. They just didn’t live up to the hype and the money in 2020-21, and there has been plenty of talk of Werner being shipped out this summer.
Speaking of potentially getting shipped out, Werner was subbed for Tammy Abraham at halftime, who ended up scoring the game winner. Chelsea held advantages in this game in possession 56%-44%, and in shots 17-14.
Both sides put up five shots on goal.
In terms of the latest transfer rumors, pertaining to the pair, we’ll start with Werner, who is now being talked about as a piece in a swap deal for Borussia Dortmund superstar-in-the-making Erling Haaland.
Yes, Haaland does not look likely to leave Dortmund this summer, but Chelsea are going to reportedly keep on trying.
As for Abraham, well he’s been linked to a slew of Premier League teams this summer, including West Ham, Aston Villa and even Arsenal. The big development here, per Sports Illustrated, is the club will now accept offers of around £30 million for the center forward.
The Hammers are now said to be leading the chase for him.
They had previously been holding out for a price of about £40-50 million.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune.
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