John Terry was quite impressed by Arsenal midfielder Emile Smith Rowe as Chelsea sealed a 2-0 win at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Goals from Romelu Lukaku and Reece James were enough to secure all three points for Chelsea, while Mikel Arteta’s side delivered another disjointed performance.
The Gunners were also booed off the pitch by their own supporters at the break and after the full-time. But as many Arsenal players struggled to make an impact against Chelsea, Smith Rowe managed to catch Terry’s eye late in the match
With Arsenal already 2-0 behind in the game, Smith Rowe picked up the ball in the middle of the pitch and dribbled through the Blues midfield.
Terry, who was watching the game, posted the clip of Smith Rowe’s highlight on Instagram along with the caption: ‘Emile Smith Rowe is a player.’
The Chelsea legend also heaped praise on Lukaku after he got Tuchel’s side off to an excellent start in the London derby. After the goal, Terry posted a replay on Instagram with a caption: ‘Romelu Lukaku what a start. Watch the run after he lays it off.’
Speaking after the final whistle, Tuchel said he was happy with how quickly Lukaku has adapted to his new teammates at the club.
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‘I’m very happy with the way he has integrated already,’ said the Chelsea manager. ‘He’s a very smart guy, he likes to be in the group and he’s a very democratic leader so he talks to everybody.
‘He is very friendly, humble and totally competitive so he gives something to our game that we did not have so much to protect balls and play very direct up front into the last line.
‘He cannot start better than with a goal. He almost scored a second one but for a big save from Bernd Leno and he assisted some half-chances and chances as well so it’s a good start. Now we have to improve from here.’