Chelsea dobbing themselves in. Getting a slap on the wrist from the Premier League. Did the punishment fit the crime? Watching the Premier League felt like a punishment at the weekend. Let’s try and pick the bones out of both these topics. Issue 82. Go.

Heard the one about a West London club getting fined £10m by the Premier League? It’s ok if you are a Brentford or Fulham supporter, this one does not concern you. Instead it is your more lavish neighbours Chelsea.

Monday afternoon seeing the twice Champions League winners being handed the largest financial penalty by the Premier League after being found guilty of illegal payments during the club’s Roman Abramovich era.

Here is a relative summary of what has played out in the past 24 hours or so:

A financial penalty but why not a points penalty? Everton and Nottingham Forest supporters likely the most aggrieved when hearing this announcement, the rest of the Premier League not too chuffed either.

I guess the logic is that the ‘crime’ is so historical that a points penalty would be a case of the ship long since sailing. Better to hit them in their pockets but what does £10m really mean to Chelsea in the grand scheme of things.

You could even argue that their title wins of 2015 and 2017 could have an asterisk next to them. Tottenham fans will feel miffed that they finished second of those two, then again I doubt a retrospective trophy will be coming their way.

The fact that Clearlake decided to dob themselves in, in doing so drawing a clear distinction between the two eras of the club needs to be commended in a way but at the same time, this is only due to saving face not something completely altruistic.

Then again, it does make for an interesting subplot when compared to the Manchester City 115 charges saga. Whereas Chelsea have been deemed to be helpful within the confines of this investigation, their top tier have attempted to place every obstacle.

Whether that means a greater punishment if this is being used as the benchmark remains to be seen. Whether City ever receive any punishment from the Premier League also remains to be seen.

Ultimately this will feel like after the horse has bolted for all of Chelsea’s counterparts. This was not just bit part players that they drafted in. the likes of Eden Hazard, David Luiz and Willian all playing huge roles in both 2015 and 2017 title wins.

The financial penalty will be money down the sofa for the Stamford Bridge outfit, the money spent in that seven year spell certainly not. It dictated trophies, history and shaped English football.

Turns out 2011 to 2018 was not bent completely out of shape.

Do you think the punishment fitted the crime? What would you have done differently? Someone email to make sure my inbox still works. Thanks.

Long-term subscribers will be hoping for some Tuesday night takeaway in this section of the newsletter. I think you may only get scraps this week. Not because, I have nothing to write about, more the Premier League gave me so little to cook with.

10 games across an extended Premier League weekend. Just 16 goals. An average of 1.6 goals per game. Three bore draws, Brighton and Newcastle winning by the narrowest of margins on the road.

It just felt like a weird week of Premier League football from the off. Almost international break like and you are trawling through the stations to watch some League 1 or 2 action on Saturday lunchtime.

Not helped by only two 3pm Saturday kickoffs - if you think that is bad, then there is only one this weekend., helped even less by Burnley and Bournemouth grinding out a share of the points at Turf Moor.

Then again, this is not even a stick to beat Arsenal with. At least they scored twice against Everton on Saturday. Max Dowman’s hype train coming into the Emirates station after his late contribution.

Maybe teams are tensing up when it matters most, every point matters from here on in. Safer to play not to lose, rather than to win. Bournemouth have drawn 14 games this season, they have played 30.

Hopefully it is just an off week and we are treated to plenty of goals over the next few days. If we are not, then Trading Standards may have to be called in.

“Best league in the world” It does not feel like at the moment.

There is nothing like a talented young English player to send the hype into overdrive. Wayne Rooney when he scored against Arsenal a generation ago, an example of the hype being positioned properly.

Fellow Toffee Francis Jeffers perhaps an example of when early hype gets too much. He moved from Everton to Arsenal under Arsene Wenger and was meant to be the ‘fox in the box’, he never showed anywhere near the required level of bite at Highbury.

Jeffers far from the only flop, some of them have also come from Arsenal but it is fair to say their hit rate is a lot stronger than most clubs. They will be hoping that they have hit the jackpot with Max Dowman.

At his age and with his goal against Everton, it is highly unlikely the youngest goalscorer record will now be beaten. Dowman the name in perpetuity unless a 15-year-old pops up on the scoresheet in the next few years.

The sky is the limit for the 16 year old, Sky already bigging him up on the Sunday Supplement the following day. One of their staff on social media suggesting Dowman’s late goal was just as important as Aguerooooooo and all that.

Problem is with English media and supporters, we love to build players up. We love to then also knock them down. Some saying he should mimic the steps of Theo Walcott 20 years ago and be on the World Cup plane, talk about getting sucked into it all.

The future is certainly bright for Arsenal’s starlet but it comes with a balancing act. How quickly do you throw him to the wolves of weekly first-team football? Time his difficulty curve and plenty of accolades could follow.

Go too quickly and burn him out and he could up eventually playing for Wolves instead.

Brighton made it three wins out of four to keep their slim hopes of a seventh-place finish alive. Yakuba Minteh’s goal was arguably one of the worst winning goals you will see this or any other Premier League season.

The Seagulls moving above Sunderland, both teams on 40 points. Maybe Brighton feel slightly more mobile in terms of moving up the table. No complaints from the Black Cats, especially if they win the derby on Sunday.

I am not even sure that Chelsea’s £10m fine is the worst thing to have happened to them in the past 72 hours. Honestly, that huddle. What on earth was that all about?

Paul Tierney knew exactly what he was doing, he did not need to be in there. Not sure if that made him look like the idiot or Chelsea as a collective. Their back four certainly idiotic when the offside trap was sprung before Anthony Gordon slotted home.

Gordon’s comments after the game were certainly refreshing as he called out both Alan Shearer and Wayne Rooney for their midweek comments. I think we need more of that in general, just a shame neither pundit was on Saturday’s Match of the Day.

All the focus on Max Dowman, the spotlight should be on Viktor Gyokeres. His transfer fee has come into question this season. How valuable will his late strike be in terms of the title race? You would imagine, it has paid nearly all it off in one stroke of the ball.

As for Everton, the focus after the game was on Thierno Barry. He got tickets for his pals in the away end (nothing wrong with that). Problem was, those pals were celebrating the Arsenal goals. No surprise that they got a bit of a hiding from actual Toffees’ supporters.

Now I’m not saying that you should never go in an away end. I did it once at Stamford Bridge for a Chelsea vs Spurs game. Hated every minute of it, but I kept very quiet. All I’m saying is that common sense would not go a miss.

Manchester City really have fluffed it haven’t they. No matter how much BBC and Sky try to tell you there is still a title race, there just isn’t.

How much of a psychological blow would have it been to see Arsenal win so late on and go 10 points clear at the top? I would imagine a fair bit. Erling Haaland has run out of puff at the wrong time, will Phil Foden even be on the plane for the World Cup?

As for West Ham a great point in the context of Saturday night, slightly less so by the time their three relegation rivals all picked up a point each the following day. Nothing changes but perhaps the confidence still grows.

This game typified the cliche ‘a game of two halves’ absolutely dull in the first half, sprung to life in the second. Bruno Fernandes once again the Manchester United assist king, can he at least match Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne’s record at the end of the season.

Since Michael Carrick took over at Manchester United, the Red Devils have picked up the most points - 22 from 27. Yes, they only have to play once a week but they are still winning more often than not. can you really look elsewhere for a new manager?

As for Aston Villa, now just a single point from the past 12 on offer. Defeat means they are now three points behind Manchester United, time for Unai Emery’s men to look over their shoulders than up the table. Can they hold out in terms of a top five finish?

Two points dropped for Liverpool. A point gained for Tottenham. An unexpected point for Spurs when you consider how many players were unavailable for the trip to Anfield, does that allow them to puff out their chests ever so slightly?

It is a start for Igor Tudor. Too early to suggest that the corner has been turned but at least it gives the Croat something to work with and especially with the visit of Nottingham Forest on Sunday - talk about a relegation six-pointer.

An additional point about Tudor, is that I was impressed by his handling of Sky Sports in not one but two interviews (one pre-recorded in the week, the other after the final whistle) Everything seems to be framed within such a negative lens, fair play for him calling it out.

As for Liverpool, their Jekyll and Hyde run continues. Arguably with one eye on Galatasaray when hosting Spurs. Caught napping in the final minute of the game. Only Chelsea’s mishap keeping them in the top five. Champions League progress a must.

Thanks to a trio of slip ups ahead, Brentford could have maximised their European hopes even further on Monday. It certainly looked that way when the Bees found themselves two goals better off at home to Wolves.

Whether Wolves are carefree because they know what is coming or they are more confidence is up for debate, but there is no debate that they were worth a point at the GTech Community Stadium. Right at the death, it could have been all three.

Right, that’s the end of issue 82 as word continues to spread around the football world.

This isn’t a newsletter that follows the crowd. It sets the lens through which you see the game and nearly 200 subscribers are now viewing it through that lens.

If you’re serious about understanding football, staying ahead of the stories, and cutting through the noise, keep this in your inbox - send it to your friend’s inbox as well, help me reach that milestone.

Issue 83 drops Friday and I’ll be back with another round of insight, analysis and trends that matter. Any feedback or comments on this issue, contact me below:

[email protected]

Follow me on Twitter (x) - https://x.com/dantracey1983

Follow me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dantracey/