AS Roma 3-0 Chelsea
Some football games can prove turning points which you look back on without it being obvious at the time.
This had a feeling of one such encounter.
Not the type of game like, for example, Ronald Koeman witnessed nine days ago when it was clear his tenure at Everton was a short time from ending before betting odds proved as much.
No, matches like this in Rome only seem clearer months later when there’s time to reflect.
In theory, this was just a routine defeat which Chelsea can bounce back from.
After all, going down to two Stephan El Shaarawy goals will not necessarily be critical to the West Londoners’ chances of progress from Group C.
Their destiny remains in their own hands.
Nor should it be forgotten that, in between conceding a goal inside the first minute and then a second shortly before half-time, Chelsea controlled long spells and didn’t seem a side in trouble but for individual mistakes.
Yet after being on the wrong end of a 3-0 scoreline – Diego Perotti made the game safe just after the hour mark – questions will be asked of their title-winning manager Antonio Conte.
Without detracting from his achievement in his maiden season in West London, the true test of the Italian’s credentials was always going to be when they had a campaign competing both domestically and in Europe; and as it stands, they are struggling to juggle both.
On his return to his homeland, this was an embarrassing return for Conte whose side are currently nine points off Premier League pacesetters Manchester City. They seem inconsistent and lacking the mental strength they had last term.
Of course, this needs to be put in perspective. But another defeat this weekend in the Premier League against Manchester United and the pressure on a supposedly unhappy manager, amid rumours which have bubbled away all season, will multiply.
Was this the beginning of the end for Conte’s Chelsea reign?
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