Chelsea fell to their third successive domestic defeat on Wednesday evening as Manchester City won 2-0 to knock the Blues out of the Carabao Cup.
Graham Potter's side had an encouraging first-half, with multiple chances and some positive performances from what was a side full of fringe players. However, goals from Riyad Mahrez and Julian Alvarez ensured the home side went through and last season's finalists were out.
But it wasn't all bad for Chelsea. Lewis Hall, who made his second-ever start for the Blues' senior side, in particular stood out. The 18-year-old was playing at left wing-back and made some really encouraging dribbles with the ball and looked fearless throughout.
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"It was a really nice performance, a mature performance," Potter said on Hall after the game. "He's a quiet lad and been really impressed with him."
Hall was taken off late in the second-half with Kai Havertz replacing him. Unfortunately, Hall's Development Squad team-mate Omari Hutchinson didn't get the chance to feature and was an unused substitute in Manchester.
That would have come as a slight disappointment for the travelling Chelsea supporters – who were brilliant throughout the match despite the result. At the end of the game, Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta and goalkeeper Edouard Mendy went over to their team-mates and told the majority of them to make their way over to the away end to applaud the supporters.
It was a nice touch from Azpilicueta and Mendy, who both know the importance of the supporters, who had travelled from all over the country to cheer on their team. This was also noticed on Reddit, with plenty of the comments talking about the Chelsea duo's class.
Chelsea would have liked to show a bit more class on the pitch, especially in front of goal. The Blues recorded 15 shots against Man City, but only five of them were on target. City's second goalkeeper Stefan Ortega Moreno did have a wonderful game – winning the club's man of the match – but Potter knows his side should have done better in the final third.
"A lot to like, created some big chances, and attacked well," the Chelsea head coach explained to Sky Sports after the game. "We weren’t perfect but did a lot right. Took a step forward in how we want to play. Disappointed with the result, but happy with the performance."
Potter added: "It was [frustrating]. We had some big chances, you won't get too many bigger ones here. We had big courage and big personality to play out and around. It's not easy because they defend so well. But the boys had quality and courage, so I liked a lot of what we did today.
"I'm disappointed with the goal [Mahrez's free-kick]. The wall could probably do a bit better and those fine details you need to do, we can improve. But overall, performance-wise, really happy."
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