Top News

Liam Rosenior's comments in his post-match press conference were telling. The Chelsea head coach, who has now won four of his five matches in charge of the Blues, was not happy with how his side performed in the final 10 minutes against Crystal Palace.

Cruising by three goals at Selhurst Park with two minutes of normal time remaining, some sloppy defending from a set-piece allowed Palace a consolation goal. It meant nothing in the grand scheme of things - Chelsea had already won the game through goals from Estevao Willian, Joao Pedro and Enzo Fernandez in south London, but Rosenior strives for perfection.

Of course, he isn't going to get that just yet. It is far too early and the Chelsea players are still adapting to his way of thinking. There is definitely a concern, though, from Rosenior when it comes to defending set plays.

• Why Cole Palmer isn't playing for Chelsea vs Crystal Palace as Liam Rosenior makes big call
• Every word Liam Rosenior said on 'special' Estevao Willian, Andrey Santos' new role, Chelsea win

FOLLOW OUR CHELSEA FB PAGE! Latest Blues news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page

"You can't get carried away and there's still things that we really need to correct quickly," said Rosenior. "I think it's a foul for the goal we conceded but it's another goal from a set play. I was not happy with our last 10 minutes. I felt we should have gone on to dominate the game further in that moment."

These are bumps in Chelsea's play that need ironing out but overall, it has been a promising start for Rosenior. Sunday afternoon was the best his new side has played since he replaced Enzo Maresca earlier this month.

Estevao played a massive role in Chelsea's strong performance south of the river. The 18-year-old was masterful for the visitors at Selhurst Park. He took his goal like a seasoned veteran - keeping his cool after running almost half of the pitch before slotting the ball past Dean Henderson. Estevao had so much time to think about it, and some players overthink in those situations, but the moment did not faze him.

"He's a player with special abilities, special talent," Rosenior said about Estevao. "He's been ill, and every time he's been on the pitch so far with me, I think he's been outstanding."

Estevao played an enormous part, too, in Chelsea's second goal. Joao Pedro played a one-two with his Brazil teammate and the pass from Estevao was near perfect, allowing Chelsea's No.20 to cut in and smash the ball past Henderson, who probably should have done better.

In the midst of the celebrations, Estevao made a point of tapping Reece James to get the Chelsea captain's attention. He then asked James to do something similar to the great Ronaldinho's trademark celebration with his hands. The two of them then looked at each other while both performing the celebration before James hugged Estevao for his part in Chelsea's second goal.

Overall, there were plenty of big positives for Chelsea and Rosenior to take back to Cobham with them. Ahead of an enormous match on Wednesday evening, the Blues' biggest of the season to date, Rosenior was able to protect some of his key players at Crystal Palace.

Moises Caicedo, Pedro Neto and Estevao were all taken off on 74 minutes, with the job virtually done at that point, with Rosenior having one eye on the trip to Naples in the week. James was also taken off with just short of 10 minutes of normal time remaining, while the likes of Josh Acheampong and Alejandro Garnacho were not even used from the bench in south London.

All focus now turns to Napoli. It is probably Rosenior's biggest challenge to date as Chelsea head coach. Arsenal are stronger opposition than Napoli, but with all the context around Wednesday night's fixture, it will be very difficult for Chelsea to get a result. But Rosenior and his players will have belief.