In the seventh minute of stoppage time, when Hakim Ziyech, a substitute, and a perplexed Reece James were arguing over a free kick, there may not have been a better moment to encapsulate Chelsea’s appalling loss to Dinamo Zagreb.

Almost exactly two minutes prior, Ziyech had sent a meek effort straight into the wall from the same location after an appalling performance following his half-time introduction. Nevertheless, he was determined to try again because the game was on the line.

It was not taken, despite James’ request. also Mason Mount’s. So Ziyech took a step forward. He again struck it directly into the wall, as expected. Insanity, according to Albert Einstein, is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results. He might have been referring to Chelsea.

Thomas Tuchel undoubtedly experienced deja vu. In the interview that followed the game, he sighed, “It’s the same story, like always.”

Once again, poor finishing and sloppy defense were the recurring themes. In fact, they are quickly becoming recognizable as Chelsea.

Their frankness at the top of the pitch was typified by Ziyech. He wanted to alter the game’s direction by introducing Cesar Azpilicueta. Chelsea was only made more angry by it.

Before the misplaced free kicks, there were numerous other unfortunate incidents, including missed crosses and misdirected shots. At the conclusion, Ziyech had attempted four dribbles but failed to complete any of them, misplacing the ball 16 times and only recovering it once.

In Ziyech’s defense, he had company as he battled. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang won’t look back on his debut with fondness because he passed up several scoring opportunities. In the same way, Raheem Sterling was wasteful. Mount didn’t provide much.

However, Ziyech’s performance and the second free-kick that slammed into the Dinamo wall best encapsulated Chelsea’s evening. Even after a summer of extravagant spending, the same issues still exist.

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