In Chelsea's 2-1 loss to Fulham, Lewis Hall broke the Premier League record for most defensive third ball wins in a single season.
Graham Potter decided to go back to a back five for the West London derby, giving the teenager his second Premier League start of his career.
The 18-year-involvement old's in Fulham's opening goal last night was questioned, but overall, he put up another strong showing.
The statistics demonstrate this. Hall has won the ball in his own defensive third more times than any other player in the league so far this season.
Ben Chilwell is still a long way from being fully fit again.
This season, the Blues have suffered from numerous injuries, many of them to important first team players. This might give other young performers more chances to make an impression on a big platform.
Although Omari Hutchinson was absent from the team last night due to Joao Felix's suspension and injuries to Raheem Sterling and Christian Pulisic, openings for attack may arise.
He hasn't exactly dazzled in his few games, but more playing time can only be good for the young player who joined from Arsenal.
Taxes, life, and the Premier League victory for Chelsea over Fulham. That is how things should be. That has been the case ever since the Cottagers last managed to vanquish their more powerful, less affluent neighbors back in 2012.
The Chelsea of old is not this, though. This Blues club is weak in the middle, struggles to capitalize on opportunities, and is currently at its lowest point in recent memory.
Not always did the 2-1 defeat seem inevitable. Joao Felix's inclusion provided Graham Potter's team some semblance of a new energy in the early going, and even though Fulham led 1-0 at the half courtesy to a goal from former Stamford Bridge star Willian, it seemed like they may come back.
Those hopes grew when Kalidou Koulibaly came home in a hurry, but after that, everything went horribly wrong. Felix clearly had the Chelsea virus in his system because he rushed into a studs-up tackle on Kenny Tete after leaving his head in the locker room. He was consequently the first Chelsea player to receive a red card on his Premier League debut.
From that point on, it was Fulham's game to win, and they succeeded thanks to Carlos Vinicius, the replacement for Aleksandar Mitrovic, who lost his man and powered a header home.
Chelsea's defeat at that point. Their second in the Premier League era and just their eighth ever versus Fulham. That is what you might refer to as rock bottom, in our opinion.
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In Chelsea's 2-1 loss to Fulham, Lewis Hall broke the Premier League record for most defensive third ball wins in a single season. 
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