Chelsea Don't Need the Ball to Win

It’s like it never left us.

The Premier League feels fully back again after another exciting weekend, with Matchday 2 serving up some exciting games, and interesting stories as ever.

One such story is the scoring touch of Anthony Elanga. The Sweden international had an entirely fruitless Premier League campaign in front of goal for Newcastle United last season, but has already netted two in two in 2026-27. We look at the bright start the former Nottingham Forest winger has made.

Elsewhere, for someone who loved having the ball at his feet, Xabi Alonso's Chelsea team aren't having a lot of it. It doesn't seem to matter, though, as they have a 100% record so far. Our viz looks at how wiling they are to cede possession.

We also have another quiz for you, and an Ask Opta question on Hull City’s excellent start to life back in the Premier League.

Before we begin, though, how has your FPL season started? If you want some help navigating Gameweek 3, check out the below from our friends at Solio.

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When Newcastle signed Anthony Elanga for a reported £55 million from Nottingham Forest in the summer of 2025, it was an interesting transfer.

Elanga recorded 11 goals and 21 assists in 82 games in all competitions for Forest across two seasons. Not astonishingly good numbers, but considering his rapid pace and the fact Newcastle were so often dangerous in transition under Eddie Howe, it felt like a potential match made in heaven.

But Elanga ended his first season at St. James’ Park with just three goals and one assist in 49 games, with all of those goals coming in cup competitions. In the Premier League, he didn’t managed a single goal from 32 outings.

He wasn’t terrible by any means. His pace worried opposition defenders and created openings for others, but for the money spent, that was a notably low return.

After a decent World Cup, though, Elanga has started the 2026-27 season like a house on fire under new boss Matthias Jaissle.

He scored his first Premier League goal for Newcastle in just the fifth minute of the draw with Liverpool, before also breaking the deadlock in Saturday’s 2-0 win at Tottenham.

To put it into context, Elanga failed to score from any of his 17 shots in the Premier League appearances last season, but has now found the net with two of his four shots so far this campaign.

The former Manchester United man put that barren first campaign well and truly behind him as he became the first player to score in both of Newcastle’s first two Premier League games of a campaign since Alan Shearer in 2003-04.

Not bad company to be keeping, but this is only just the start. Elanga has never scored more than six goals in a single Premier League season, but after Matchday 2, he’s already a third of the way to equalling his best return.

Chelsea are two wins from two under new manager Xabi Alonso. Both matches have been thrillers: a 3-2 win away at Fulham on Matchday 1, followed by a chaotic 4-3 victory over Brighton at Stamford Bridge.

There has been fun. There have been goals.

There has not been much possession.

Across those two matches, Chelsea have averaged just 32.5% of the ball, the second-lowest average possession figure by any team in the Premier League so far this season.

Against Brighton, their 25.9% possession and 146 successful passes were both their lowest figures on record in a Premier League match, with data going back to 2003-04.

Their zones of control map below shows just how little of the pitch Chelsea have controlled with the ball.

And yet, it has not mattered.

Chelsea have scored seven goals in their opening two games, with the frightening trio of Morgan Rogers, Cole Palmer and João Pedro finding plenty of space to run into and proving devastatingly dangerous on the break.

Alonso is only the fourth manager to see his side score seven or more goals across his first two Premier League matches, after Bobby Robson (eight in September 1999), Michael Laudrup (eight in August 2012) and Marcelo Bielsa (seven in September 2020).

It is certainly an unusual style for a side with Chelsea's ambitions to be so willing to concede possession. But it does seem to be a deliberate approach. Chelsea went long with 22.9% of their passes against Brighton on Sunday, their highest proportion in a Premier League game since the start of last season.

For now, though, the goals are flying in and the wins are following. No possession? No problem.

1. In the loss to Man City on Friday, Crystal Palace’s Anan Khalaili became the first player to record 10+ tackles on their first Premier League start since who did so for Leicester City versus Bournemouth in August 2015, the season the Foxes went on to win the title?

2. Who is the only player to be involved in more Premier League goals than Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White in 2026 (13 goals, 4 assists)?

3. Matthias Jaissle is the first Newcastle manager to win as many as four points from his first two Premier League games in charge of the club since who?

4. Dominic Calvert-Lewin became the first Leeds United player to score in four consecutive Premier League appearances at Elland Road since who did so in April 2004?

5. Alvaro Arbeloa is the fourth Fulham manager to lose each of his first two Premier League games in charge of the side. Name any of the other three.

Our latest question is from Rob K, who asks: “When was the last time a newly promoted team won their first two games, and did they stay up?”

Do you have a stat-based question you’d like Opta to answer in a future edition of SVQ? Email us at [email protected] or message us on X @OptaAnalyst with #AskOpta and we’ll pick the best one.

Answer:

We assume this is referring to the Premier League, Rob, and Hull City’s outstanding start to the season.

The Tigers followed up their 2-0 win over Manchester United last week with a 1-0 success at Coventry City on Saturday.

Hull tend to start well in the Premier League. Remember the 2008-09 season when they were inspired by Geovanni and won six of their first nine games? They managed to stay up despite winning only two of their last 29.

They also started well in 2016-17, beating Leicester City and Swansea City in their first two games, though they lost eight of their next nine after that, and ultimately went down.

Hull have therefore started a new Premier League season with two wins twice, making up half of the four occasions when a promoted team has done so.

The others were Bolton Wanderers in 2001-02, who won their first three before finishing 16th, and also Huddersfield Town in 2017-18, who won their first two, also ultimately finishing 16th.

So, only once previously has a promoted team won their first two games and been relegated in a Premier League campaign. Unfortunately for Hull, it was them, but they have a great chance to make up for that this season.

Here's some of the latest data-driven offerings you can find on our website:

1. In the loss to Man City on Friday, Crystal Palace’s Anan Khalaili became the first player to record 10+ tackles on their first Premier League start since who did so for Leicester City versus Bournemouth in August 2015, the season the Foxes went on to win the title?

N’Golo Kanté

2. Who is the only player to be involved in more Premier League goals than Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White in 2026 (13 goals, 4 assists)?

Bruno Fernandes (7 goals, 14 assists)

3. Matthias Jaissle is the first Newcastle manager to win as many as four points from his first two Premier League games in charge of the club since who?

Sam Allardyce in 2007-08 (also W1 D1)

4. Dominic Calvert-Lewin became the first Leeds United player to score in four consecutive Premier League appearances at Elland Road since who did so in April 2004?

Mark Viduka

5. Alvaro Arbeloa is the fourth Fulham manager to lose each of his first two Premier League games in charge of the side. Name any of the other three.

Roy Hodgson, Slavisa Jokanovic and Scott Parker

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Until next time,
Opta Analyst