Chelsea match Antonio Conte's energy in season-opening win

Diego Costa grabbed an 89th minute winner for Chelsea as they beat West Ham to kick off Antonio Conte's tenure at Stamford Bridge with a bang. They're still far off their final form under the new coach, but Conte's influence on the Blues has already clearly been felt.

Instead of switching into his famous 3-5-2, Conte had his team line up in the familiar 4-2-3-1 formation Jose Mourinho used throughout last season. N'Golo Kante was the only one of Chelsea's new signings to start the match, sitting alongside Nemanja Matic in front of the back four, while Willian, Oscar and Eden Hazard played behind Diego Costa. The personnel looked similar, but there was a new energy and excitement about Chelsea that was palpable from kickoff.

Eden Hazard had one of his poorest seasons on record last year, and all eyes were on the little Belgian to see how he'd bounce back under a new manager. He didn't disappoint. Hazard ran at Hammers defenders fearlessly and looked dangerous almost every time he had the ball. Hazard played with a confidence that was missing all last year, and took his penalty fearlessly to send Chelsea up 1-0.

Hazard wasn't the only Chelsea player who looked fired up from the start. Diego Costa seems ready to take on Conte's challenge to score 30 goals this season. The combative striker had himself a vintage Diego Costa game: he probably should've been sent off for a second yellow card after lashing out at West Ham goalkeeper Adrian's ankles, but in true Costa style, he managed to escape punishment and in turn downed West Ham with his late winner.

Nemanja Matic looked like he aged 10 years during Chelsea's campaign last year, but his partnership with Kante, aka the French Energizer Bunny, already looks ideal. Matic's calm passing, strong tackling and reading of the game dovetailed well with Kante's incessant running, interceptions, and pure willingness to sacrifice his body to do any and everything in service to the team. They showed good understanding to alternate runs forward with cover in front of the back four, and Conte's insistence on signing Kante while refusing to sell Matic seems to be well vindicated on the strength of their first performance together.

Chelsea looked good under Conte, but there's plenty of room for improvement. As energized as the Blues looked, pressing high and winning the ball in dangerous areas, they often lacked ideas going forward, and struggled to create clear-cut chances on goal. As always, Oscar worked tirelessly for the team but was often caught too far from goal and didn't link effectively with Diego Costa. Aside from Cesar Azpilicueta, Chelsea also look suspect in the back, and it's clear that will need to be addressed before the transfer window slams shut.

It's hard to say how this Chelsea team will look once the teams are finalized, but there's cause for optimism again at Stamford Bridge. The season is just one weekend old, but Conte-mania is well and truly here.

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