Archive November 9, 2025

Chelsea winger Alejandro Garnacho has started slowly but is beginning to show the kind of form that used to get Manchester United fans excited.

The Argentine, 21, got two assists during the 3-0 win over Wolves on Saturday, setting up the opening goal for Malo Gusto and the third for Pedro Neto, with Joao Pedro scoring the other after good work from livewire substitute Estevao Willian.

This was the first time Garnacho has had two Premier League assists in the same game, with the feat coming in his 99th appearance in the competition.

Yet it has taken time for Garnacho to play this well for Chelsea, having left under a cloud at Old Trafford.

Garnacho was exiled into the so-called ‘bomb squad’ by United manager Ruben Amorim and negotiations with Chelsea took a long time before his £40m move was completed in the final days of the summer transfer window.

That absence from competitive action left Garnacho looking short of fitness when arriving at Stamford Bridge, with no goals or assists in his first six matches.

However, Garnacho is now delivering, with two goals and two assists in his latest four matches.

When asked about Garnacho after the match, Maresca said: “He has had an open mind since we started. Last season he struggled a bit then got better and better. Garnacho has been very good on the left side.”

The advice to Garnacho that has drawn prime form from the youngster has been a simple one.

His Chelsea prospects depend on him adhering to it.

“Work hard – this has been the main message when he joined us,” Maresca said. “In terms of quality on the ball we know he is good; to play with us he has to work hard.

“On the ball he’s doing well, but also off the ball he’s working hard.

“He arrived from a club where he was not training 100% so his physical condition was not good. Slowly now he is better.

Garnacho was ridiculed by supporters of League One side Lincoln City on his first start for Chelsea, lasting just 59 minutes during a poor display in the Carabao Cup.

The winger has been eased in at Stamford Bridge, without completing a match until playing the full 90 minutes in the win against Wolves.

It was an impressive performance, featuring fantastic link-up play with his compatriot Enzo Fernandez.

Garnacho won a free-kick with his first action of the game and Fernandez’s resulting shot was saved.

Midfielder Fernandez, captaining the team in the absence of regular skipper Reece James, later clipped a pass into Garnacho, whose shot was saved from close range and was the best attempt during the first half.

In the second half, Garnacho’s in-swinging cross was headed in by unlikely scorer Malo Gusto to break the deadlock and ease pressure on a team who had been booed off at half-time.

Garnacho sprinted into space to set up Pedro Neto’s goal that sealed victory.

The assists came after Garnacho spared Chelsea’s blushes with an equaliser against Azerbaijani side Qarabag in the Champions League on Wednesday, after he came on as a half-time substitute when his team were trailing.

Garnacho also performed strongly in the 1-0 win at Tottenham a week ago, having scored his first goal in a defeat at home to Sunderland two weeks ago.

Maresca’s best attack for the biggest matches now tends to feature Garnacho ahead of rival left-winger Jamie Gittens.

There remain further questions for Garnacho in his Chelsea career though.

His goals last season for United came against Southampton, Brentford and Leicester, and in a heavy defeat to Newcastle.

Chelsea ended Saturday sitting second in the Premier League table.

The Blues have played one game more than Manchester City, Liverpool and Bournemouth, who all play on Sunday, but a win before the international break leaves a positive feeling around the club.

Chelsea are also the division’s top scorers with 21 goals from 11 games, but that would have been a difficult statistic to believe during a first half played at a lethargic pace.

“I was very worried before this game,” said Maresca. “These are the worst games, they’re tricky. Everyone is thinking it’s going to be easy.

“I can understand in the first half people were not happy because we didn’t score. Then when Estevao came on the energy raised because people love that kind of player.”

The 18-year-old Brazilian has largely been limited to substitute appearances in the Premier League as he acclimatises to English football.

Maresca said this week that the youngster, who moved from his homeland in the summer, had complained about the cold weather in London, and the manager warned him to expect it to get worse before it gets better on that front.

“You can see his talent,” said Maresca of Estevao. “We are trying to help him to adapt and give him the right minutes.

“He arrived from Brazil, he needs time to adapt, but he’s going to start games for us in the future.”

Chelsea next face a trip to Turf Moor after the international break to face Burnley on 22 November.

They remain in the EFL Cup, where they have had a seemingly favourable draw away to League One side Cardiff City in the quarter-final, and they have a glamour game at home to Barcelona in the Champions League coming up three days after the Burnley test.

Star attacker Cole Palmer is due back from injury in December, which could provide a further boost as Chelsea aim to qualify for the Champions League through at least a top-four or top-five finish this season.

Maresca’s “word hard” message to Garnacho is reflected in his wider view of how Chelsea can reach their targets.

Michael van Gerwen overcame Beau Greaves in a thriller as reigning champion Luke Littler opened his Grand Slam of Darts title defence with a victory.

Three-time world champion Van Gerwen looked to be cruising to a win at 4-2 in Wolverhampton, only for 21-year-old Greaves to win back-to-back legs to take the match to a decider.

Doncaster’s Greaves had three darts to take out 52 for victory but could not finish, before Van Gerwen saw out the match.

Greaves, who beat Littler in October to become the first woman to reach the World Youth Championship final, must now beat former champion Gary Anderson on Sunday to stay in the competition.

It was smoother sailing for Littler, 18, as he continued his 100% record at the tournament with a 5-1 win against Karel Sedlacek.

The world number two, a winner on his debut in 2024, was frustrated by dropping a single leg.

“I was obviously looking for the whitewash,” said Littler.

“I just thought to myself, when I lost the bull, you’ve got to get off to a quick start. Anyone has to – it’s only first to five. That’s what I’ve done. But yeah, not the best that I dropped the leg.”

Littler is aiming to take Luke Humphries’ spot at the top of the rankings by the year’s end, but the world number one made an emphatic start to his bid for a second Grand Slam of Darts title as he breezed past Alex Spellman.

The 30-year-old hit two maximums as he completed a straightforward 5-0 victory, helping him to the top of Group A after Michael Smith’s 5-3 win against Nathan Aspinall.

Elsewhere, Gerwyn Price was beaten by Rickey Evans, Wessel Nijman overcame Josh Rock and Stefan Bellmont beat James Wade.

Daryl Gurney 4-5 Connor Scutt

Martin Schindler 2-5 Luke Woodhouse

Nathan Aspinall 3-5 Michael Smith

Gary Anderson 3-5 Niko Springer

Luke Humphries 5-0 Alex Spellman

Luke Littler 5-1 Karel Sedlacek

Michael van Gerwen 5-4 Beau Greaves

Stephen Bunting 4-5 Alexis Toylo

Danny Noppert 5-4 Lukas Wenig

Damon Heta 5-1 Martin Lukeman

Chris Dobey 5-1 Jurjen van der Velde

Ricky Evans 5-4 Gerwyn Price

Stefan Bellmont 5-4 James Wade

Cam Crabtree 5-1 Jonny Clayton

Wessel Nijman 5-4 Josh Rock

With the match still in the balance, British and Irish Lions duo Henry Pollock and Tom Curry both stood with their hands on their hips, waiting to enter the Test arena.

An entire front row of fellow Lion Jamie George, Fin Baxter and Asher Opoku-Fordjour were also ready for battle.

All five England forwards strode on to the pitch on the 54-minute mark as Steve Borthwick sought to take the game away from stubborn opponents.

The score was 21-18 at that point.

As in last week’s win against Australia, England’s bench proved the difference, bringing new levels of energy and experience as England raced away from a tiring Fiji to win 38-18.

Replacement wing Henry Arundell, celebrating his 23rd birthday, also had a telling impact on his return to international rugby after two years.

Starting behind the halfway line, the Bath flyer accelerated past two Fiji defenders and team-mate Marcus Smith, who kicked the ball through, to score a stunning try.

That passage of play summed up the star quality and X-factor on Borthwick’s bench – and the stiff competition for places.

“We have a number of players with pace on the edges and on the wing,” Borthwick said.

“It is exactly the tough decisions you want as a head coach.”

Captain Maro Itoje also scored off the bench as did former England skipper Jamie George.

Last week against the Wallabies, 20-year-old replacement Pollock scooped the ball up with one hand to score a memorable try that confirmed England’s dominance.

“We’ve seen in Test matches that the margins are so small,” Borthwick added.

“It is about understanding the fitness of the players for going 80 minutes and the impact of the bench.

“That alongside composure and resilience are important components.”

England have now won nine straight games – the last time they enjoyed a longer streak was an 18-game run from 2015 to 2017 during which they won their last Grand Slam.

Their current run stretches back to their defeat in the opening game of this year’s Six Nations in Ireland.

Having lost so many Tests by fine margins in the final quarter last year, England’s strength and depth is now showing.

Fin Smith was back at fly-half against Fiji with his namesake Marcus Smith, another Lions tourist and fly-half, at full-back.

Both players needed to grasp the opportunity with George Ford still believed to be the front-runner to face the All Blacks.

Fin Smith, who admitted he was disappointed by his form on the Lions tour, controlled the attack well and played the entire 80 minutes to prove his ability to come through sticky moments in games.

Marcus Smith’s eye for a gap helped Arundell to his moment of glory, with his grubber kicking behind Fiji used regularly to good affect, but doubts still remain about his quality at full-back.

“This team has come under a bit of criticism in tight games, certainly under my reign as captain [in 2024],” George told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“We had composure and clarity in the huddle where I thought Fin Smith led really well.

“When you’re bringing on the likes of Tom Curry and Maro, that sort of experience in the huddle is invaluable.

“It’s all been part of the process, its all been part of the journey. We’re still on the early part of the curve of becoming the team we want to be.

“We do have an end goal of winning the World Cup but at the same time we are aware we need to be a significantly better team in order to do that.”

Borthwick’s side face a dangerous New Zealand team, who they lost narrowly against last autumn, next Saturday.

Scott Robertson’s side also used their bench to defeat Scotland late on after a score by replacement Damian McKenzie proved vital.

Fiji claimed a 30-22 victory over England in a warm-up game before the 2023 World Cup but lost 30-24 in a bruising quarter-final at the tournament.

Ranked ninth in the world, the visitors scored three tries and were a threat for large portions of the game at Allianz Stadium

A key moment came before Arundell’s score when scrum-half Simi Kuruvoli spilled the ball in the act of scoring.

That try would have put Fiji back within a score and might have changed the momentum heading into the final quarter.

“I thought he had control of the ball but the TMO said he lost control,” said Fiji head coach Mick Byrne. “But at no stage did he, as it went from one arm to the other.

“It would have been nice to have that momentum following a try.”

The defeat ended a five-match winning run – which was the Pacific Island side’s equal best streak since 1999.

Borthwick was impressed by the visitors and said his side can learn a lot from the way Fiji play.

“If they continue their development and with the impact Fijian Drua [their Super Rugby Pacific side] are having, I would not be surprised if they are challenging the top four and for Rugby World Cup semi-finals,” Borthwick added.