Gary Neville says that it was vitally important for Chelsea to pick up the opening three points in the 2022/23 Premier League season away to Everton and insists that the result goes some way in helping Thomas Tuchel forget about a poor pre-season period.
The Blues kicked off the season on the right foot with a rare victory at Goodison Park against a toothless Everton side who were deprived of both Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Salomon Rondon. Still, Chelsea had to battle hard to ensure all three points were taken back to London on this occasion.
Jorginho's penalty late in first-half stoppage time ensured Tuchel got off to a winning start alongside the likes of Arsenal, Spurs and Man City. Meanwhile, the likes of Liverpool and Man United both dropped points on the opening weekend.
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"It's always about the win when you play Premier League. A win is a win and it's most important because it's what we play for," Tuchel said in his post-match press conference. "It's important to build confidence, belief, the atmosphere, and also to be open for improvement and criticism because there are a lot of things to improve.
"There are also a lot of good things to take away. We have struggled in the last years to steal the points here and win and today we got all three and a clean sheet. From here we go."
Neville has underlined the importance of the victory on opening weekend for Chelsea and the impact it will have to help the club move on from the instability that has overshadowed them during the summer with the ownership situation and pre-season tour.
"Chelsea, I think it was really important for them to get over the line in a difficult one," he reflected on Sky Sports' Gary Neville podcast after the Super Sunday clash between West Ham and Man City.
"It was always going to be awkward. Everton not having their strongest team out was obviously a factor in that as well. But Chelsea had a little bit of instability in pre-season. It has been highlighted by me and others. It was so important for them to get that win."
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