Thomas Tuchel's tinkering gives Chelsea and Mendy brief respite

Thomas Tuchel will be delighted with a helping hand from VAR but Chelsea's derby win over West Ham at Stamford Bridge has left the Blues boss with more questions…

Coming from behind to win a London Derby should be enough to put a beaming smile on anyone's face. But it's hard to imagine Thomas Tuchel's mood being greatly improved by Chelsea's triumph over West Ham.

The Blues boss has cut an unfortunate figure lately, which is hardly surprising given how fragile his team is. Todd Boehly has done his best to encourage the German by spending more money than any other owner in Europe this summer, but Tuchel still seems to recognize that his squad is short even to retain top four status, let alone consider closing the gap. on those above them.

Tuchel's worries won't be allayed by a 2-1 victory over David Moyes' Hammers, who will race back through London, rightly outraged at a late decision to deprive them of a point.

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That's all West Ham came for if the first half was any indication. The visitors sat in a low block and waited for Chelsea to break them down, seemingly confident in their hosts' inability to do so.

16 conclusions as Goalkeepers Union win Merseyside derby

This belief was not misplaced. Chelsea had 70 per cent possession in the first half – and close to the same after the break – but failed to fire on target. The Blues' slowness made the Hammers' game.

Chelsea fans may be bickering over who they hold responsible. The midfielders? Conor Gallagher has been forgiven by Tuchel after his cerebral fart last weekend left his teammates a light man for more than two-thirds of the game against Leicester. And the player widely expected to be transferred before the transfer deadline has been paired with yet another to convince the manager he can be trusted on a regular basis, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, as well as Mateo Kovacic, who appears to be missing the presence of N'Golo Kante. more with each passing week.

Gallagher's energy and Loftus-Cheek's penetration weren't enough. The English pair could point to the attackers and a lack of viable options ahead of them, with Christian Pulisic particularly anonymous on a rare departure offered as more of a hearing than a show of faith.

Tuchel held on for an hour before hooking Gallagher for Armando Broja, who made enough cameos to earn an opportunity, especially as the alternatives struggle. But West Ham's first game forced further changes. Michail Antonio's tap-in and preparation did not reassure the Blues boss that his side had heeded his warning that they are 'not hard to beat' at the moment, which will remain true as long as the Mendy jitters continue, no matter how many £60m centre-backs Tuchel places in front of the underperforming keeper.

These changes, including the introduction of Ben Chilwell, triggered Chelsea. The wing-back moved forward to score from close range within four minutes of arriving before teaming up with Broja to set up another sub, Kai Havertz, to grab an 88th-minute winner. Which shouldn't have been.

Moyes called the decision to deny a 90th-minute leveler from Maxwel Cornet an 'outrageous and absolutely rotten decision' and it's hard to argue, try like Tuchel and the more radical faction of the Goalkeepers Union but could do it. Cornet's equalizer was a proportionate punishment for another poor hold from Mendy who, rather than claiming the ball in a 60-40 with Jarrod Bowen, opted to parry pathetically to come back into play. from Bowen's boot, he stayed on the ground, in Antonio's words, "like he'd been shot".