Chelsea and Liverpool trial football without defensive midfielders

If only there were two Moises Caicedos. Chelsea and Liverpool have a shared willingness to pay in excess of £100m and if the battle for his services will be conducted off the field, his suitors showed why each wants him by providing a glimpse of the holes in their midfields. Yet, with the expensive Ecuadorian lingering in limbo, the absence of a specialist defensive midfielder on either side added to the entertainment. In a fixture where Claude Makelele and Javier Mascherano used to prowl, snuffing out danger, in a meeting of teams whose previous four clashes had ended goalless, 1-1 felt a deceptive scoreline. Each had a goal disallowed by the most fractional of offsides. It could have been 2-2, perhaps 3-3. None of which brought the statement result either required to consign last season’s underachievement – grievous in Chelsea’s case, mitigated in Liverpool’s – to the past. But Mauricio Pochettino’s reign at Stamford Bridge began with early evidence it will be better than Graham Potter’s failed project and Frank Lampard’s second coming, and not merely because it could scarcely be any worse. Chelsea lacked spirit last season and mustered a response here. They were too ponderous last year and played with more pace now. Chelsea rediscovered some ambition and excitement, their costly hotch-potch of a team resembling strangers at times, but a work in progress at others. After a disaster of a season comes one with Disasi and if Axel Disasi’s surname felt too close to the bone for Chelsea in the Todd Boehly era and the French defender was perhaps culpable for Luis Diaz’s opener, he scored an equaliser and the first goal of Pochettino’s tenure. The Argentinian named four debutants in the starting 11 which, given the speed of the revolving door at Stamford Bridge and only three of them are summer signings, felt a small number though perhaps the more telling statistic was that only three of his substitutes had prior Premier League experience. The newness extends beyond the names and faces, however: the new vice-captain Ben Chilwell was given a more advanced role on the left wing. In the space of two minutes, he set up Disasi’s goal and celebrated what he thought was a swift second: like Mohamed Salah 10 minutes earlier, he was then thwarted by VAR. Luis Diaz celebrates scoring Liverpool’s opener Nicolas Jackson’s bow was eclectic and electric , containing a caution, a moment where he handled and could have conceded a penalty and a skied miss, but also a burst of pace and low drive that might have yielded a winner. Robert Sanchez, parachuted in as Kepa Arrizabalaga could strangely be loaned out, was at least blameless when beaten. Levi Colwill, pitched into a duel with Salah as he operated largely as a left-back, however, was tormented. For Liverpool, the element of the new was confined to a midfield lacking their – and Chelsea’s targets – Caicedo and Romeo Lavia and the six summer departures. The new occupant of the No 10 shirt was at the base of the midfield. Alexis Mac Allister brought constructive passing, flanked by Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo in an attack-minded line-up. With the Dutchman in a deeper role, Jurgen Klopp fielded four players who are forwards by trade. His side were muted in the second half, when only Virgil van Dijk, with an audacious curler, came close to a winner, but threatened to dominate for a 20-minute spell before the break when overloading with attackers meant they promised to run riot. They led from a swift, devastating break; Mac Allister’s incisive pass showed the creativity he brings at the base of the midfield, Salah jinked against a backtracking Colwill and bent a pass. Luis Diaz slid in to score. Even as Salah lost his record of scoring on every opening weekend of the Premier League season for Liverpool, he came agonisingly close to extending it. The Egyptian curled a shot against the bar and dinked one over Sanchez; the finish was as precise as Trent Alexander-Arnold’s defence-splitting pass, a goal was awarded and replays showed Salah was fractionally offside. Axel Disasi celebrates scoring Chelsea’s equaliser Chelsea capitalised on the reprieve. Disasi reacted quicker than Alexander-Arnold when, after Liverpool cleared a corner, Chilwell headed the ball back into the box. Chilwell thought he had added a goal to his assist, rounding Alisson to slot in, but a second goal was chalked off for offside. But Liverpool’s new vice-captain was again caught unawares: Alexander-Arnold’s defensive deficiencies remain an issue. But there was a point when they were camouflaged as Liverpool had the cohesion and the chemistry. Chelsea, though, had an answer. They were prompted by Enzo Fernandez – if he had seemed the £107 million defensive midfielder when signed, the Argentinian excelled as a prompter and a passer while, played out of position, Conor Gallagher did some of the donkey work behind him. Pochettino gave Klopp a big hug before and afterwards, the second perhaps tinged with relief that Chelsea had shown more mettle than they did in much of last season. But there is still a glaring gap in each side: while the points were shared, Caicedo cannot be and a defensive midfielder is needed in both London and Liverpool.