Simplicity is King for McFarlane

Sunday's win was a case of reviving some old principles

Booting the ball long to your physical number nine. Having a box-crashing number eight latching onto crosses from a tricky winger. Winning duels. Riling up the opposition and their increasingly irritated supporters.

Callum McFarlane appeared to restore some basic ideas to a Chelsea side that had lost them.

Sunday’s win over Leeds was by no means a vintage performance, especially at a ground that has become a cauldron of disappointment in recent years. But it at least conjured something to build from.

Robert Sanchez’s best performance in months came in a game where he was not asked to string together short passes against a ferocious press. Instead, Chelsea applied some common sense.