Chelsea vs. Stoke City: Winners and Losers from Premier League Game
Chelsea took another important step toward the Premier League title with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Stoke City on Saturday evening, although the game did not come without its costs.
Top-scoring striker Diego Costa, having been introduced at half-time, limped off after just 10 minutes of action—with a suspected hamstring injury leaving his participation in the remainder of the Blues' season in serious doubt.
Jose Mourinho's side collected themselves and recovered—Loic Remy won the game after Charlie Adam's 65-yard wonder-goal cancelled out Eden Hazard's opening penalty—but Costa's misfortune tempered the joy of clinching a big three points.
The result nevertheless restores Chelsea's seven-point advantage at the top of the table, although Manchester City can reduce that if they beat Crystal Palace on Monday.
Read on for some winners and losers from Stamford Bridge.
Loser: Diego Costa
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As important as the result was to Chelsea's remaining ambitions for the campaign, the main storyline from the game was clear as soon as Diego Costa waved his hand at the bench and limped toward the sideline.
Jose Mourinho intimated before the game that the Spain international, named on the bench, was available to play, but only in the case of a near emergency. Perhaps that was not entirely true, as the Portuguese decided to employ his top scorer at half-time, following a first-half display that, while uninspired in parts, was hardly the cause for panic.
Needless to say, the move backfired horribly. Costa barely had time to make an impression before his hamstring gave out on him. He limped away with a sadness in his face that anyone who watched last season's Champions League final will immediately recognise.
His injury problems are becoming an increasing concern, and it might now be a while before we see Costa on a pitch again.
If that is the case, it makes Chelsea's ongoing march toward the league title all the more difficult. Without Costa, they lack the clinical goalscorer who has perhaps elevated them above the pack for much of the campaign.
Was it really worth risking him for 45 minutes of this match if it meant losing him for the final eight games?
"For sure, a couple of weeks minimum," Mourinho told Sky Sports (via ESPN FC), when asked how long Costa would be out. "But let's see what happens."
Winner: Charlie Adam
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He will never forget his goal, and neither will many of us. There looked to be nothing on when Charlie Adam picked up the ball 70 yards from goal—the television cameras missed the actual shot first time around, cutting instead to a replay of some previous action—but the Scotland international saw differently.
Not only was the vision impressive, but the technique was perfect, the sweet strike leaving Thibaut Courtois unable to recover in time.
"It's one of the goals that every super player in the world would like to score," Mourinho acknowledged afterward. "The Peles, the Maradonas, the Messis."
Goals from a team's own half are often fleetingly lauded—David Beckham's, for many reasons, is always remembered, while others do not always linger forever in the memory—but this was nevertheless a moment of genius from Adam.
It was just a shame that Stoke could not parlay that moment of individual brilliance into a tangible, positive result.
Loser: Jose Mourinho
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Jose Mourinho is rarely exposed to stinging criticism—although his tactical approach, especially in big games, occasionally has its detractors—but bringing on Diego Costa seemed a huge misstep from a boss who rarely makes such egregious errors in judgement.
The Portuguese will doubtless face a lot of criticism in the media in the days to come. It bears watching just how long Costa is sidelined and how that affects his team.
If they go on to lose the title from this point—a hugely unlikely outcome, but still within the realm of possibility—then it may become a permanent stain against Mourinho's record.
After explicitly stating before the game that Costa was only to be used if really needed, it certainly seemed he was thrown into the fray too eagerly, to disastrous consequences.
Afterward, Mourinho told Sky Sports (via ESPNFC):
"If my medical department decide to take four weeks to recover Diego it wouldn't happen, but in football we need risk—high risk—sometimes. As a manager, with a result at half-time that I don't like, I risk.
The medical department risk a little bit, but with all the scans they did two days ago, the muscle was clean. The image was completely clean and the player trained twice, 100 percent.
He did much more in training that he did in this game. He shot lots of times and we put him in dozens and dozens of specific actions that you see in a game and we decided to risk. If the result was 2-0 or 3-0 he would not play and we give him another week.
"
Victory, and the all-important three points, keeps Chelsea well clear of their rivals and comfortably on course for the title. But that was as much down to luck as judgement (Asmir Begovic's mistake ultimately gifting Chelsea their winner), and that will not prevent Mourinho from facing some significant questioning about his decision-making in this instance.
Winner: Eden Hazard (and Willian, and Cesc Fabregas)
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If Chelsea are to reach their intended destination without Diego Costa, then the likes of Hazard and Cesc Fabregas will have to shoulder the load. With that being the case, much of Saturday was cause for optimism, as the Blues' vaunted creative players impressed at every turn.
Hazard—who has continued to play at a high level, even when his team-mates have succumbed to the effects of fatigue—was the game's standout performer, beating Stoke defenders with ease and creating dangerous openings with seemingly every touch of the ball he took.
It remains a mystery why goalkeepers continue to dive before his penalties—surely they know by now that is exactly what he wants—but it was nevertheless a nervelessly taken opportunity under high pressure. He was also the architect of Remy's winner, as he unselfishly passed the ball into the Frenchman's path.
He was ably supported elsewhere, with Fabregas looking more energised than in recent weeks as he dictated the match with something closer to the command we saw at the start of the campaign.
And then there was Willian, whose quick-thinking created the initial opportunity that led to Remy's winner.
The Brazilian grew into the game the longer it went on, with Mourinho perhaps ending up impressed with what he saw from three of his main creative players.
Losing Costa is undoubtedly a huge blow, but the heightened displays of some of his providers suggest the Blues will still be able to cope without him.
