Romelu Lukaku's final kick of his first spell at Chelsea came in a Super Cup.
On August 30, 2013, the Belgian – then 20, still young, albeit one with the physical stature of a player much further on in his career – missed the decisive penalty as Chelsea became the first team to lose successive Super Cup fixtures, going down in a shoot-out to Bayern Munich.
Not long after that game, Lukaku headed to Everton, initially on a loan deal before he made a permanent move to Goodison Park a year later. A return to Chelsea, however, has always seemed a possibility for the striker who stormed onto the scene with Anderlecht in his teens.
Whereas a Super Cup marked the end of his first spell in London, Wednesday's meeting with Villarreal showed just why the Blues are set to break their transfer record to sign the 28-year-old, who arrives back at the club a Serie A winner and one of Europe's leading forwards.
This time, Lukaku watched on from afar as Chelsea, defeated on penalties by Liverpool in the 2019 edition, clinched victory in the shoot-out after a 1-1 draw in Belfast – Kepa Arrizabalaga coming on to be the hero.
ROM THE REMEDY
It seems wrong to be too critical of Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea, given their remarkable success in his short time at the club. They went unbeaten in their first 14 games under the German, secured a top-four finish, reached the FA Cup final and, of course, won the Champions League.
Yet from Tuchel's appointment until the end of last season, Chelsea scored only 38 goals in all competitions.
The chances were being created - it would be difficult for players such as Mason Mount, who crafted the second-most opportunities in the Premier League last season, Hakim Ziyech, who opened the scoring in Belfast before going off injured, Christian Pulisic and Champions League final goalscorer Kai Havertz not to fashion their fair share.
Much was made of Timo Werner's first season at the club too, as the former RB Leipzig forward fluffed his lines time after time. He finished with six league goals but from 79 attempts, registering a shot conversion rate of just 7.59 per cent, while he only netted five of the 23 'big' chances, as defined by Opta, that came his way.
Up until the 27th minute at Windsor Park, when Ziyech tucked in from Havertz's centre, it was all Chelsea, but the same issues which had plagued their frontline last season were present once more.
In the sixth minute, Marcos Alonso's brilliant cross caught Werner on his heels. It would have been a gift for Lukaku. Werner forced a great save from the resulting corner, though that was the only shot he managed in his 65 minutes on the field.
More issues came after Ziyech's opener, as Chelsea (who had 67.9 per cent possession before the break) failed to add to their lead and let Villarreal – who levelled through Gerard Moreno – claim control.
Lukaku's imminent arrival, however, should ensure this profligacy, demonstrated again by Pulisic's 100th-minute miss from close range, is not repeated throughout the coming campaign.
Chelsea ended the game against Villarreal with 20 attempts, of which seven were on target. Had Lukaku's signing come in time, it is hard to imagine penalties would have been required at all to decide the outcome.
KEPA THE HERO
While Chelsea's forwards toiled, it was forgotten man Kepa who came on to be the difference.
In the 119th minute, Edouard Mendy made way for the former Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper – just over 17 minutes after that change, Kepa dived low to his right to keep out Raul Albiol's weak effort and ensure the Champions League holders have now lifted the Super Cup in eight of the past nine seasons.
It was a brave call by Tuchel, who follows in the footsteps of compatriots Jurgen Klopp and Hansi Flick in winning the Super Cup – German coaches having triumphed in the last three editions.
With Lukaku soon to be back on board, it could – and perhaps should – be the first trophy of many for the Blues this term.
For now, though, this was just a nice story for Kepa, the keeper who once refused to be taken off in a cup final had come on late to help decide the outcome in his team's favour.
Carsley hopes 'young' England will benefit incoming boss Tuchel
England interim manager Lee Carsley said the widened pool of young players available for selection will help incoming boss Thomas Tuchel.
Carsley was handed the reins to the national team temporarily following Gareth Southgate's departure and has given opportunities to young players during his short spell, which will end with the Nations League match against the Republic of Ireland on Sunday.
The 50-year-old has handed debuts to six players - Morgan Gibbs-White, Angel Gomes, Noni Madueke, Lewis Hall, Morgan Rogers and Curtis Jones - during his five-match reign.
"The challenge [for the young players] is to stay there now. It's a tough squad to get into, and they've put themselves in the picture," the outgoing coach said.
"It's good for Thomas [Tuchel, who takes charge on January 1] that the pool has increased.
"I've seen them up close. I know what they're capable of, and they've got the mentality to compete. There are so many quality players, the competition is extreme, and they've got to stay in the race."
Carsley came under pressure after the Three Lions lost 2-1 to Greece at Wembley in October, but a 3-0 win in the return fixture on Thursday has put them in a strong position in their Nations League group.
Lukaku among five withdrawals from Belgium squad
Romelu Lukaku has joined four other players in withdrawing from the Belgium squad due to injury ahead of Monday's Nations League finale against Israel.
Belgium sit third in Nations League Group A2 following their 1-0 defeat to Italy on Thursday, a result that ended their hopes of reaching next year's quarter-finals.
They are simply playing to avoid automatic relegation when they face Israel behind closed doors in Hungary, with a draw enough to send the Red Devils through to a play-off against a third-placed finisher from League B.
Napoli striker Lukaku – Belgium's all-time leading scorer with 85 goals in 120 caps – has joined Aston Villa's Amadou Onana, Chelsea's Romeo Lavia, Arthur Theate of Eintracht Frankfurt and Brugge's Maxim De Cuyper in dropping out with unspecified issues.
Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne had already asked not to be included in Domenico Tedesco's party as he works his way back to full fitness after suffering a thigh injury.
Sebastiaan Bornauw, Koni De Winter, Jeremy Doku and Youri Tielemans were also left out of Tedesco's squad due to fitness concerns, while uncapped Coventry City striker Norman Bassette has now been called up as cover.
Haiti secure League A promotion, Gold Cup spot with 8-0 win over Sint Marteen; Grenada, Curacao, Puerto Rico also victorious in League B
Haiti extended their unbeaten run in the Concacaf Nations League as they secured top spot in Group C of League B when they hammered Sint Marteen 8-0 Friday.
That win earned Haiti promotion to League A and, by extension, secured their participation in next year’s Concacaf Gold Cup.
Meanwhile, the race in Group B took a twist as Grenada defeated leaders Saint Lucia, while Curacao earned a victory to jump into the number one spot.
Saint Lucia vs. Grenada
Grenada knocked Saint Lucia out of the top spot in Group B with a 4-0 victory at the Ergilio Hato Stadium in Willemstad, Curacao.
After playing out a goalless first half, Grenada eventually broke the deadlock in the 50th through Jermaine Francis’ header.
Regan Charles-Cook doubled the lead six minutes later with a firm finish from deep inside the 18-yard box.
Trevon Williams added a third in the 74th, before Myles Hippolyte struck a blazing left-footed shot from the edge of the box in the 86th to cap Grenada’s win.
With the victory, Grenada moved to seven points and assured itself at least a third-place finish to avoid relegation. Saint Lucia dropped to second place on nine points, one point behind Curacao, on 10 points.
Saint Martin vs. Curaçao
Curacao registered a 5-0 rout of Saint Martin in the feature game at the Ergilio Hato Stadium in Willemstad.
Jearl Margaritha stole the show by scoring four goals, two in each half, in commanding fashion.
His first came in the 24th as he used good footwork to lose defenders and blast the opener.
He added a second 10 minutes later, when he pulled off an excellent backheel flick to put Curacao 2-0 up at the break.
In the 54th, Margaritha sprinted into the box and ripped a loose ball for his hat trick.
Juninho Bacuna scored a penalty kick in the 78th, before Margaritha finished off his outstanding performance with another tidy finish in the 80th.
With one point separating them, Curacao and Saint Lucia will lock horns in an intriguing clash to determine the group winners on Monday.
Sint Maarten vs. Haiti
A hat-trick from Frantzdy Pierrot and a Duckens Nazon brace laid the platform for Haiti’s 8-0 beating of Sint Maarten at Estadio Centroamericano de Mayagüez in Mayagüez in Puerto Rico.
It was Attys Christopher who fired home as Haiti made the most of a corner kick.
Pierrot struck a double blow in the 14th and 25th, with Markhus Lacroix adding a fourth in between in the 19th.
The onslaught continued in the second half as Haiti tallied three more goals in rapid fashion. Nazon struck in the 49th and 58th as Pierrot completed his hat trick in the 52nd.
Mondy Prunier capped the win with a 67th-minute strike.
Haiti, has now scored 26 goals in five matches. They will play second-placed Puerto Rico, who defeated Aruba 5-1 on Monday.
Puerto Rico remains in the hunt for a Gold Cup preliminary spot as one of the best runners-up.
Sint Maarten has been relegated.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
