LONDON: The gruelling Thursday-to-Sunday turnaround that comes with playing in the Europa League might already be taking its toll on Chelsea.

By drawing 0-0 at West Ham United, Chelsea dropped their first points in the Premier League and failed to score under Maurizio Sarri for the first time this season.

That Chelsea produced such a flat and insipid display at the London Stadium was perhaps no surprise, given six of the starting lineup against West Ham also began the Europa League match against PAOK Salonika in Greece on Thursday.

And it probably didn’t help that the Chelsea squad only returned from Greece on Friday afternoon after their flight back to London scheduled for late Thursday was cancelled because of bad weather.

Sarri had already voiced his unhappiness that English clubs playing in Europe’s second-tier competition aren’t given dispensation to play their next Premier League game the following Monday.

“In Italy, it’s possible,” said Sarri, who arrived in the offseason from Italian side Napoli. “Here I have to play 64 hours after a Europa League match.”

As it was, Chelsea had the early kickoff on Sunday and were neutralised by a West Ham defence that had conceded 11 goals in their first five games. Even Eden Hazard, who didn’t travel to Greece in midweek, struggled.

“We need to move the ball quicker,” Sarri said, “and we need more movement without the ball.”

West Ham squandered the best chance of the game when Andriy Yarmolenko headed wide late in the second half from point-blank range.

The result left Liverpool as the only team with a maximum of 18 points from the first six rounds. Liverpool travel to Chelsea next weekend for the biggest game of the season so far.

No problems for Arsenal

There was no such Europa League hangover for Arsenal, who beat Everton 2-0 for a fifth straight win in all competitions.

Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored goals within three minutes of each other early in the second half at Emirates Stadium.

Aubameyang is having to play on the left wing to accommodate Lacazette as the team’s central striker, but it is not stopping the Gabon striker from scoring. Since his Premier League debut on February 3, only Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (16) has scored more goals than Aubameyang’s 12.

Arsenal didn’t have to travel for their Europa League match and had mostly fielded a reserve team in their 4-2 win over Ukrainian side Vorskla Poltava on Thursday. Aubameyang scored twice in that game, to go with a goal against Cardiff two league games ago.

While Arsenal manager Unai Emery’s methods are starting to kick in, Everton are surprisingly labouring under their new coach, Marco Silva. Everton have won only one of their six league games, losing the last two.

Kane ties defoe

In Saturday’s late game, goals from Harry Kane, from the penalty spot, and substitute Erik Lamela earned Tottenham Hotspur a nervy 2-1 win at Brighton & Hove Albion in the rain to take the heat off coach Mauricio Pochettino following a run of three consecutive defeats in all competitions.

Kane fired home from the spot to end his five-game goal drought and move alongside Jermain Defoe as Tottenham’s joint fifth-highest scorer on 143 before

Erik Lamela doubled the visitors’ lead 14 minutes from time with his fourth goal in four league games.

Anthony Knockaert set up a grandstand finish in stoppage time, but Spurs held out in sodden conditions on the south coast for a huge win after a tough couple of weeks to move into fifth on 12 points.

“I am happy with the three points but more with the performance and the reaction,” a relieved Pochettino said. “The way we conceded was crazy. One minute from the end, we should be more vigilant and focused.”

Published in Dawn, September 24th, 2018