Chapter 279: It's Not That We Played Well—The Opponent Was Just That Bad
Winning streaks always serve to boost the confidence of professional players and spark their ambition to chase glory.
After starting the new season with seven consecutive wins across three competitions, Chelsea's squad naturally entered a high-spirited, intensely motivated training-and-match mindset.
This wasn't arrogance—it was the mentality of a winner.
When a team keeps winning, victory itself becomes addictive. It lifts spirits and creates an ever-growing drive to extend the streak.
Moreover, under the constant reminders and subtle warnings from Mourinho and his coaching staff, it was no easy task for anyone in the Chelsea squad to let that confidence morph into complacency.
Last season, both Hazard and Bertrand began to show signs of swelling egos—
But they were quickly and thoroughly "disciplined" by Mourinho… and Leon.
Mourinho's lectures and sarcasm the young players could still endure.
But Leon's "mental bombardment" and terrifying extra training sessions? Those were what truly broke their spirits.
In fact, Hazard and Bertrand, who had been tormented by Leon's grueling personal drills last season, ended up completely tamed.
The other young players, having witnessed their teammates being reduced to crying wrecks during those infamous extra sessions, never again dared to get cocky.
So now, no matter how sweet or sycophantic the outside praise might be,
Chelsea's internal atmosphere remained one of enthusiasm and hard work—without a trace of arrogance.
Especially with both Leon and Kroos standing as examples.
Between them, they had club grand slams and a World Cup title.
Neither of them had ever slacked off in training or asked for special privileges.
So naturally, the rest of Chelsea's young players wouldn't dare step out of line.
Mourinho was extremely pleased with the current training intensity and competitive drive within the squad.
But knowing that after the next league match, Chelsea would be traveling to face Sporting Lisbon in their second Champions League group game,
he still had to carefully plan starting lineups for the next two fixtures, taking into account the physical condition and age of every key player.
After wrapping up the third-round League Cup match against Bolton Wanderers, Chelsea was granted two and a half days of rest.
On the afternoon of September 27, they returned to Stamford Bridge to face Aston Villa in Premier League Round 6.
For this fixture, Mourinho continued resting veterans Ibrahimović and Terry.
And in terms of formation, he rolled out a tweaked 4-4-2 system.
Using the base setup of a 4-3-3, he isolated right winger De Bruyne and pushed him into a right-attacking midfield role.
In this fluid system, De Bruyne had the freedom to roam wide or drift centrally. His ability to deliver threatening passes in the final third would be further unleashed.
What's more, he could swap positions with Leon at any time.
When De Bruyne dropped deeper into a traditional number eight role, he and Kroos could control the midfield tempo,
allowing Leon to push forward into a second striker or central attacking midfielder role.
With this tactical setup, Chelsea's in-game adaptability was second to none.
Aston Villa had clearly not expected Chelsea to hit them with such a tactical curveball at home.
In the early stages of the match, their defensive midfielders and left-back looked utterly confused.
How much pressure should they apply to De Bruyne and Leon, who kept interchanging positions?
After all, in this match, Chelsea wasn't fielding a "right winger" in the traditional sense.
When De Bruyne—or Leon—drifted into the right half-space without hugging the touchline,
should Villa's holding midfielders and fullbacks push up with them to apply pressure?
This was the tactical riddle Mourinho had thrown at Aston Villa's manager.
Meanwhile, Chelsea's players—already well-versed in this new system—quickly exploited their numerical advantage in midfield to slice through Villa's defensive line.
In the 19th minute, Leon switched positions with De Bruyne and received a line-breaking pass from Kroos,
bursting past Villa's defensive midfielder Westwood with a sudden acceleration.
Just as Tom Cleverley—Villa's right central midfielder on loan from Manchester United—rushed over to cover,
Leon, without hesitation, sent a diagonal lobbed through ball over the top.
Lukaku, starting again alongside Drogba, took off down the left wing,
controlled the ball in stride, and bulldozed through Alan Hutton's challenge with sheer power.
This sudden strike completely shattered Aston Villa's defensive shape.
Even though Lukaku's low cross into the box lacked precision,
Drogba still managed to outmuscle his old friend and opponent, Philippe Senderos, and got his head to the ball.
The African Beast knocked it back across goal into the center of Villa's box.
Before center-back Nathan Baker could recover and intervene,
a figure wearing Chelsea's number 10 darted forward, took one touch to control, and calmly side-footed the ball toward the far corner with his left foot.
It was a smooth, confident finish—light yet decisive.
Amid the chaos inside Villa's box, the deft placement caught the defenders completely off guard.
Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan dove to make the save,
but with his 6-foot-4 frame and 94-kilo build, his movement was just a fraction too slow on the descent.
Not that his size was the main issue—it was the angle.
Leon's shot was placed with such precision that Guzan could only watch in despair.
He couldn't believe it.
That level of technical finesse… from Leon?
The ball bounced gently off the inside of the far post and rolled slowly along the netting before settling in the back of the net.
Commentators from around the world clutched their scripts and gasped in disbelief!
"Goal! An exquisite finish from Leon! What a stunning shot into the far corner! Honestly, I'd rather believe that shot came from Messi or van Persie!
My God… Leon has just shown us another shooting technique he's added to his arsenal!"
"Unbelievable accuracy! This is the terrifying talent of Leon in full bloom. Is there anything on the pitch he can't master? Today's young forwards need to take notes on the quality of this strike!"
"Leon is a terrifying player! His raw ability is at the very top of the sport. Maybe one day, we'll see him play as a pure striker, going toe to toe with Messi and Ronaldo!"
…
Leon couldn't hear any of these wild compliments echoing from international commentators.
He was just as surprised as anyone that he'd been able to pull off a shot of that caliber.
Lately, he'd been doing a lot of extra shooting drills, slowly raising his shooting stat toward 82. He was on the brink of breaking through.
That number, in the context of the big four European leagues, was actually quite respectable.
It was already equivalent to the finishing ability of a starting striker on a team trying to avoid relegation.
Still, being able to replicate the level of quality in that last goal consistently? Leon knew he wasn't there yet.
There was some luck involved, but this could also be seen as a reward for the effort he had been putting into those shooting drills.
At least now, occasionally, he could pull off moments of pure brilliance.
After celebrating with his teammates in the corner, Leon replayed the feeling of that shot in his mind, savoring it.
But he ultimately suppressed the urge to try another one like it too soon.
"Scoring beautiful goals really is a dangerous addiction…" he thought with a grin.
Leon figured that if he indulged himself every once in a while, his teammates wouldn't hold it against him.
But as the team's tactical core, he knew his primary responsibility was to stay focused on his assigned duties.
Once the match restarted, Leon dropped deeper into midfield, partnering with Matic to first secure defensive stability,
then look for opportunities to exploit Aston Villa's aggressive forward movement with quick counterattacks.
With De Bruyne on the field as the designated final passer, Leon didn't have to worry about playing the killer through ball himself.
In the 53rd minute of the second half, De Bruyne provided a precise assist for Drogba to score Chelsea's second goal of the match.
At that point, the outcome of the game was firmly in the hands of Chelsea's midfield engine.
From then on, Aston Villa's long-ball attempts barely troubled Chelsea's back line.
Unfortunately, today, "Little Beast" Lukaku had switched into happy-go-lucky mode and squandered two absolute sitters—both laid on a plate for him by Kroos and Leon.
Seeing this, Mourinho chose to shut things down early, bringing on Gary Cahill and Ramires to secure the lead.
In the end, Chelsea cruised to a clean 2–0 win over Aston Villa at home, extending their winning streak across all competitions to eight matches!
The fans' confidence heading into the next Champions League group stage clash surged even higher.
Just two days later, Mourinho led the team on a trip to Lisbon, Portugal.
On paper, Sporting CP didn't look weak at all.
Rui Patrício, Maurício, João Mário, William Carvalho, Nani…
These players alone made up nearly half a Portuguese national team.
However, their first group-stage match had ended in an embarrassing draw with Slovenian side Maribor.
Because of that, Chelsea couldn't help but lower their expectations of them.
Nevertheless, in the match that night, Leon stuck firmly to the tactical instructions given to him by the coaching staff.
Rather than wasting energy marking Sporting's wide midfielders, he went straight into one-on-one duels against their lone defensive midfielder—William Carvalho.
Physically strong and technically capable, Carvalho had the tools—but speed wasn't one of them.
Leon repeatedly blew past him with explosive acceleration, tearing through Sporting's soft midfield underbelly.
If Carvalho had a faster, more agile defensive partner, perhaps he could've handled the pressure better and focused more on distribution.
But Sporting didn't have such a player. Carvalho was left alone as the only holding midfielder.
And that tactical flaw forced Sporting's coaching staff to endure constant, crushing pressure throughout the match.
Leon ended up producing another masterclass—adding both a goal and an assist to his Champions League tally.
Carvalho couldn't stop him at all.
In the 63rd minute, he picked up a second yellow card and was sent off.
With their midfield anchor gone, Sporting CP collapsed over the final half-hour, conceding two more goals and losing 1–4 at home.
Meanwhile, in another match being played at the same time, Schalke 04 and Maribor also wrapped up their group-stage tie.
Just like Sporting in the first round, Schalke could only manage a draw with Maribor, earning just a single point!
So, after two rounds in the Champions League Group G, Chelsea stood proudly at the top—undefeated and untouchable.
Surprisingly, it was Maribor who sat in second place.
Schalke and Sporting, after two rounds, had only managed one point each. A total collapse.
During his post-match interview with Sky Sports, Leon didn't hold back his thoughts:
"Maybe… it's not that we played particularly well," he said with a smirk. "Maybe they were just that bad.
Yeah, their performance tonight was just kind of... trash."
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