Ings blanks in first Double Gameweek 25 fixture amid Chelsea penalty latest

SOUTHAMPTON 1-1 CHELSEA

• Goals: Takumi Minamino (£6.0m) | Mason Mount (£6.8m)
• Assists: Nathan Redmond (£6.4m)
• Bonus: Mount x3, Minamino x2, Jannik Vestergaard (£4.7m) x1, Cesar Azpilicueta (£5.7m) x1

INGS CAN ONLY GET BETTER

Ings takes Mount down inside the penalty area

It was an inauspicious start to Double Gameweek 25 for Danny Ings (£8.5m), who recorded a two-point score at home to Chelsea.

The forward failed to create a chance in the match and had just one shot – a 71st-minute rebound which was well off target, after Jannik Vestergaard (£4.7m) had hit the crossbar with a header.

Ings’ biggest contribution in the match was for the opposing team, as he gave away a penalty early in the second half by fouling Mason Mount (£6.8m) in the box.

“Tackling in the box is always dangerous and Ingsy knows this. He thought it was a cross coming in, wanted to block the cross.” – Ralph Hasenhuttl

With Jorginho (£4.7m) on the substitutes’ bench, Mount stepped up to level from the spot and confirm himself as Chelsea’s second-choice penalty taker.

Ings owners, meanwhile, will be hoping Tuesday’s clash away to Leeds will prove much more fruitful after a possession-hungry Chelsea starved Southampton of chances on Saturday.

While Southampton appeared to flit between a back-four and a back-three early in the tie, Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men effectively reverted to his tried-and-tested 4-2-2-2 system – though number 12 Moussa Djenepo (£5.4m) was far more withdrawn than we are used to seeing.

However, lack of possession was the real cause of Ings’ shot-shy performance rather than formation.

TAKI ON ME

Southampton loanee Minamino nets the opener at home to Chelsea

Takumi Minamino (£6.0m) scored in the first half with Southampton’s only open-play goal attempt of the entire match.

Nathan Redmond (£6.4m) managed to find space behind the Chelsea midfield before sliding a ball through to Minamino on 33 minutes.

The on-loan Liverpool forward sold dummies to both Cesar Azpilicueta (£5.7m) and Edouard Mendy (£5.1m) before finishing with the outside of his boot.

Minamino’s goal is the first Chelsea have conceded to an opposition player since Tuchel took over as manager ahead of Gameweek 20. That run consisted of league ties against Wolves, Burnley, Spurs, Sheffield United and Newcastle.

“We played the maximum what we can at the moment. Tactically, against such a strong side with their possession stats, it’s important that you are committed against the ball. We defended quite well. The draw is, for us, like a win today. A first step back to our old behaviours, I think. With the ball, he (Minamino) is definitely a win for us. Against the ball, he still has to do a little bit more. But he learns this; it’s not something you learn from one day to the next, it takes a little bit of time.” – Ralph Hasenhuttl

TUCHY SUBJECT

Despite holding an ice pack to an ankle which had already taken a whack in Gameweek 24, Tammy Abraham‘s (£7.2m) half-time substitution was a tactical change. Thomas Tuchel explained:

“I’m not concerned about him. It [his substitution] was not from injury. It was hard for him to show his quality. Tammy could not put his stamp on this game so we changed, a little bit, the formation.” – Thomas Tuchel

Callum Hudson-Odoi (£5.7m) was Abraham’s replacement but lasted just 30 minutes before being hooked by the German.

“We brought in Hudson but with Hudson, I was not happy with the energy and with the attitude in counter-pressing. So we decided to take him off again because we demand a lot. We demand one hundred per cent. I had the feeling that he is not right in this shape. So it’s a decision for today. A hard decision, I know, for the players to come on and off but tomorrow, it’s forgotten. He has all possibilities to start again against Atletico [Madrid].” – Thomas Tuchel

Chelsea’s lack of cutting edge in the final third was the real bee in Tuchel’s bonnet following the 1-1 draw. Such a display, against team a team riddled with defensive personnel problems perhaps does not bode too well for a Double Gameweek 26 schedule which pits the Blues against Manchester United (home) and Liverpool (away).

“Sometimes it’s like this in football; you concede one chance and they score. We were very, very good in the first 80 metres of the pitch but in the last 20, I was not happy. We were not decisive enough, we were not aggressive enough. We were not clinical enough; to be ahead, to create more chances, to create more big chances. Decision making was not good today. For me, frustrating was the last 20 metres. We had so many opportunities – half-chances – and I had the feeling we end our own attack, ourselves.” – Thomas Tuchel

Southampton XI (4-2-2-2): McCarthy; Bertrand, Salisu, Vestergaard, Bednarek; Romeu, Ward-Prowse; Minamino (Tella 74′), Djenepo; Ings (Adams 85′), Redmond (N’Lundulu 90+3).

Chelsea XI (3-4-2-1): Mendy; Rudiger, Zouma, Azpilicueta; Alonso, Kante, Kovacic (Jorginho 75′), Reece James; Werner, Mount; Abraham (Hudson-Odoi 46′, Ziyech 75′).

PREMIUM MEMBERS AREA HOME PAGE

Elsewhere in Double Gameweek 25…

Burnley collected their ninth clean sheet of the season as they drew 0-0 with West Bromwich Albion on Saturday afternoon.

However, owners of their defensive assets can probably consider themselves a little fortunate to benefit from the shut-out.

It looked, at first, that a red card for Semi Ajayi (£4.8m) in the opening period would severely dent the Baggies’ ability to trouble Nick Pope (£5.6m) but the exact opposite happened.

West Brom were comfortably the more attacking of the two outfits in the second half at Turf Moor and really should have found the net on multiple occasions.

Mbaye Diagne (£6.0m) had a close-range effort cleared onto the crossbar while Matheus Pereira (£5.4m) fluffed a golden chance in front of a largely unguarded goal after a square-ball.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles (£4.6m) really should have blasted the loose ball home, instead playing a sideways pass back to Pereira whose second effort was cleared off the line by James Tarkowski (£5.3m).

The centre-back is currently on for maximum bonus while Pope, who made two saves, is projected to receive two. Matt Lowton (£4.5m) is on one bonus despite a late yellow card.

Everton finally won their first Premier League match at Anfield for the first time since 1999 and there was involvement for some key Fantasy assets.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£7.6m) was named on the bench but still managed to get himself an assist after he came on and was fouled by Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.4m).

Gylfi Sigurdsson (£6.8m) netted the resulting penalty, his second goal in his last three away matches.

Richarlison (£7.9m) also extended his recent form when he opened the scoring in the first few minutes of the encounter.

He has now scored in each of his last two matches, James Rodríguez (£7.7m) laying on the assist this time around. The Colombian has now registered an attacking return in two of his last three starts too.

Everton’s first clean sheet since Gameweek 15 came at the expense of a Liverpool attack that, once again, offered little going forward at home.

They have found the net just twice in their last six Premier League outings at Anfield.

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