Chelsea

Chelsea are fourth in the table and started today without a recognised striker. If that sounds like a contradiction, it is the most Chelsea thing about this season.

A 2-0 win over Manchester United at Stamford Bridge, with goals from Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer after the break and United's Lisandro Martínez sent off, took them to 16 points from nine games: five wins, a draw and three defeats, according to the BBC table. Goal difference is +4.

The manager

Xabi Alonso was appointed in May on a deal that began on 1 July, according to Wikipedia, after Liam Rosenior was sacked in April and Calum McFarlane saw out the season as interim. He arrived to a squad already crowded with talent. The most obvious proof is the winger Estevao, a 19-year-old who had not started a league game until today, was an unused substitute in the cup defeat at Liverpool, and then had two goals ruled out for offside against United. BBC Sport reported that Alonso praised his response.

Names to know

• Morgan Rogers, the £117m signing from Aston Villa: five league goals, and playing up front.
• João Pedro, also five, but out with a thigh injury and no return date.
• Cole Palmer, three goals and four assists, and the one with a red card in the 2-0 defeat to Tottenham on 24 October.
• Pedro Neto, three goals from the wing.

The numbers behind the money

Clearlake Capital now has full control. Chelsea announced in September that it was buying out Todd Boehly and Mark Walter, with Hansjörg Wyss staying as a partner. Boehly left the chair, and the seat is listed as vacant.

Here is the part that deserves scepticism: Wikipedia's tally puts Chelsea's summer at £348.8m spent and £402.76m received, a net gain of about £54m on transfers. They paid £117m for Rogers and still sold their way into surplus, with Nicolas Jackson going to Villa for £47.5m and others out the door. Paying big for a few players and recouping on the rest is a financial strategy, and Chelsea have it down. Whether it is a football strategy is the open question. Jackson is gone, João Pedro is injured, and BBC Sport notes that Danny Welbeck and Emmanuel Emegha stayed on the bench today while Rogers led the line.

The season so far

Results have been loud. A 4-3 win over Brighton and a 3-2 win at Fulham in August. A 2-1 defeat at Arsenal. A 3-0 defeat at Brentford. A 5-1 win over Bournemouth. And a League Cup exit on Wednesday at Liverpool, 1-1 and then a 6-5 loss on penalties.

What to watch next

Sunderland away on Sunday 8 November at 14:00. Sunderland are bottom on five points, though they scored at Coventry today in a 3-1 defeat. Chelsea have 19 league goals, so the attack is not the worry yet. Alonso's answer to the striker question will show there all the same.