Angus is an experienced football journalist at Football FanCast, specialising in Premier League reporting, opinion writing and in-depth football analysis. Since graduating from Southampton Solent University in 2022, he has developed extensive experience covering the English game, producing thousands of articles across a wide range of clubs and competitions.  

Before joining Football FanCast, Angus led VAVEL's Brighton & Hove Albion department, gaining valuable experience in club-specific reporting and editorial leadership. He subsequently joined Football FanCast through Snack Media's academy, now part of Valnet, and has progressed into the publication's Opinions and Features team.
 

As one of Football FanCast's longest-serving writers, Angus has covered numerous major developments across the Premier League, combining breaking news experience with detailed features and considered opinions. His work draws on years of reporting to provide context behind performances, transfer activity and the wider issues shaping English football.

Chelsea can't quite sustain the momentum needed to apply pressure on Arsenal at the top of the Premier League ladder, losing on Sunday to a Sunderland side who started the day at rock-bottom.

This was always going to be a transitional campaign for Xabi Alonso, but that's not to say that we just accept defeats such as this one. Questionable tactics and a lack of incisiveness unravelled Chelsea on a day which suggested three points were very much on the cards.

Joao Pedro's ongoing absence due to injury has frustrated Alonso to no end, but he's still reluctant to unleash one of Danny Welbeck or Emmanuel Emegha in his place, with Pedro Neto deputising up top and leading a line which failed to break down a brittle Sunderland defence.

How Chelsea played at Sunderland

Two seasons in succession now have Chelsea been defeated by Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. The Black Cats have not been in good form this season, and Chelsea should have had enough to send them packing.

That said, the absence of Pedro at the front of the ship is ever more keenly felt in west London. The Brazilian had been in electric form over the first couple of months, scoring five goals and supplying three assists across six Premier League games, but has missed the past three with a hamstring injury.

It will not be lost on Alonso that Chelsea failed to score across two of those fixtures, with Sunderland standing firm against a Blues attack lacking the cutting edge of earlier outings.

Chelsea's forwards huffed and puffed, but failed to make a dent against a porous Sunderland backline. For all their possession, Chelsea didn't manage to do much with it, creating 0.66 xG (expected goals) to the home team's 2.38.

Expected Goals (xG) is a metric designed to measure the probability of a shot resulting in a goal.

It's not fair to heap all of the blame onto the forwards, though. In defence, Chelsea struggled once again.

Why Wesley Fofana is a problem at Chelsea

Levi Colwill was at fault, conceding the penalty (albeit controversially) from which Enzo Le Fee was able to dispatch a penalty and win the game for Sunderland. However, Wesley Fofana's unconvincing performance was more of the same from the Frenchman, who may well be surplus to requirements in the not-too-distant future.

Chelsea failed to contain Brian Brobbey, and therein lies the crux of Alonso's side's struggle on a miserable afternoon on Wearside. Colwill might have made the costly mistake, but Fofana cost £75m to bring over from Leicester City back in 2022, and he lacks confidence and presence against hulking strikers.

Were it not for the tireless energy of Moises Caicedo from midfield, the Ecuadorian dropping into centre-back in what is clearly an illustration of Alonso's concerns over his current crop at the back.

Fofana has been questionable for too long. The 25-year-old has suffered big time on the injury front, but he has made three direct defensive errors across six outings this season, and he has not showcased the composure which would befit one of the world's most expensive centre-halves.

Chelsea have issues to sort out, to be sure, and it's clear that Alonso needs to quickly relight the fire which charged some of the club's biggest superstars, with one of the best of the best turning into the new Mason Mount.

Chelsea superstar is becoming the new Mason Mount

Mount was once the poster boy at Chelsea. He emerged from the academy and played a focal role in that team, assisting Kai Havertz for the goal which won Chelsea the Champions League, scoring 33 goals and supplying 37 assists across 195 appearances.

But Mount, 27, has been at Manchester United for over three years now, leaving his boyhood club for £55m and never recovering the level whcih faded while he was still on the Stamford Bridge roster.

Full faith remains in his ability to turn things around, but there's no question that Cole Palmer, now valued at £96m, has his work cut out in returning to his earth-shattering early form at Chelsea, once again struggling to hit the right notes this season.

Palmer, 24, is one of the world's most talented attacking midfielders, but we haven't seen the best version of the Three Lions star (once again overlooked by Thomas Tuchel) for some time, and his performance against Sunderland was another example of an opportunity missed for a once talismanic figure.

At Sunderland, Palmer created two chances but failed to complete a cross or a dribble, despite numerous attempts. He was too flimsy in the challenge, losing four of five duels, and offered little by way of defensive contribution.

Alongside Morgan Rogers, Palmer tried to light the spark, but was ineffective - and not for the first time this season. We're not saying he's going to crash as hard as Mount did, but there are worrying parallels, with Palmer at the top of his game when emergent; now, his Premier League career having deepened, he is scrambling to find that youthful avidity that supercharged his ascent.

Fofana is a problem, for sure, but the defender has been for some time. Palmer, however, is far more important to the fluency of Alonso's attacking system, and it's crucial that he returns to his best - sharpish.

Palmer has the gifts to return to top form at Chelsea, and there's no question that he was sharper when combining with Pedro. That said, time was when Palmer needed no other player to produce magical moments, and the fact we're not seeing much of that right now is concerning.