Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel handed a surprise league debut to Malang Sarr in the 1-0 win over Brentford at the weekend.
With Antonio Rudiger failing to win his fitness battle for the game, Sarr was given the responsibility on the left-hand side of the back three.
The 22-year-old was very impressive, for the most part, and supporters on Twitter were praising the defender for helping to keep a clean sheet:
he kind of surprised me tbf
— Rids ⭐⭐ (@CFC_RIDS) October 16, 2021
A bit shaky but well done to him
— Al Falikh (@falikhjafrey) October 16, 2021
Once Sarr gains some calmness in his game he will be even better
— Kambi (@KambiMunene) October 16, 2021
Was solid in his challenges but still a little shaky when pressured,, good debut tho considering the factors and there’s always room for improvement
— CFCUPTHEBLUES (@cfcuptheblues) October 16, 2021
Must admit he surprised me well done
— Rossilampant⭐⭐ (@rossilampant) October 16, 2021
He was playing fantastic
— Chilly🇳🇴💙 (@Chilly_CFC) October 16, 2021
I was really in doubt about him today… Glad he has shown he’s capable.
— Phoenix 🔥 (@sylvanus_smart) October 16, 2021
He was always going to come good just needed a chance!
— Jake Wawman (@JakeWawman) October 16, 2021
Great game he had.
— Emmanuel Ayoola Adetinkan (@eadetinkan) October 16, 2021
There were definitely a couple of hairy moments when Sarr was caught out of position with long balls, but other than that, it was a pretty composed performance from the Frenchman.
Whether he’ll be given more opportunities in upcoming games will very much depend on when Rudiger returns from a back injury. The German picked up the issue on international duty and it remains to be seen whether he’ll be available when the Blues take on Malmo on Wednesday night.
