Chelsea were fortunate not to become the first Premier League champions to start their title defence with loss after Swansea City threatened a first-round upset on Saturday.
A celebratory atmosphere remained around Stamford Bridge as the club basked in the afterglow of last season's success – a feat Jose Mourinho, fresh from signing a new deal, warned would not be repeated unless they showed the "quality and determination of champions".
Chelsea were found wanting in the first department against Garry Monk’s impressive side, although they showed no little determination to secure a 2-2 draw after Thibaut Courtois was sent off.
Things had started well enough for the reigning champions as they got the better of a manic seven-minute, first-half spell, started when Oscar's free kick crept into the far corner.
Debutant Andre Ayew drew Swansea level in style, after a fine touch and unerring finish, only for a Willian cross-shot to then loop in off Federico Fernandez.
Monk’s side did not falter, though, and dominated the second half, deservedly levelling through Bafetimbi Gomis after the striker was taken down in the box by Courtois.
Mourinho would not offer an opinion on the sending off, only on how he saw the match.
“Swansea didn’t have chances against 11,” he said. “The team was playing very, very well in the first half.
“In the second, in one minute, it was a penalty, red card and the goal – 2-2.
“If you have 10 men and are winning you can defend well and try to find a strategy, but to play with 10 men and try to win the game is more difficult.
“I would say we were the best team with 11 players and with 10 we fought hard, some fighting at the limit of their condition.”
Mourinho’s counterpart had his own opinion on the red card.
“It is a goal-scoring opportunity,” Monk said. ”The letter of the law is that it is a red card and we got what we deserved today.
“I thought our performance warranted at least that point. We went for it and showed our attacking prowess.”
Chelsea held on after the goalkeeper’s sending off and had a few chances of their own, but in truth they were lucky to take a point as Swansea continued where they left off last season.
Swansea were first to threaten, with Gomis heading wide and then being denied by a late John Terry block.
Diego Costa was infuriated by Michael Oliver's decision not to award a penalty against Fernandez, before an already entertaining contest burst into life with three goals in seven minutes.
With 23 minutes on the clock, Chelsea struck the first blow as Oscar curled in a free kick that evaded those in the box and nestled in the far corner.
Courtois saved well from Gomis, only for the ball to run free and, having seen his initial follow-up blocked, Ayew showed exceptional awareness to drag the ball back and rifle home.
It was a memorable introduction but one cancelled out inside 100 seconds as Willian’s cross-shot looped in off Fernandez.
Costa and Gylfi Sigurdsson tried their luck as the first half continued, with Gomis denied from close range as Swansea returned strongly after the break.
Gomis, put through on goal by Jonjo Shelvey, was halted by a clumsy Courtois challenge, earning Swansea a penalty and the goalkeeper a red card.
Terry was booked for protesting, and summer signing Asmir Begovic’s first moment in a Chelsea shirt involved him picking the ball out of the net as Gomis coolly slotted home.
Monk’s side did not stop there, and Jefferson Montero forced Begovic into two fine saves before Shelvey tried his luck direct from a corner.
Swansea fans celebrated wildly as Gomis turned in their third – only to be rightly chalked off for offside – before Wayne Routledge, on for the injured Montero, forced another save from Begovic.
After Eden Hazard and Radamel Falcao had gone close Costa punched the ground, having felt the excellent Ashley Williams had clipped him – frustration that summed up Chelsea’s afternoon.
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Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Four-day collections of TOH
Day Indian Rs (Dh)
Thursday 500.75 million (25.23m)
Friday 280.25m (14.12m)
Saturday 220.75m (11.21m)
Sunday 170.25m (8.58m)
Total 1.19bn (59.15m)
(Figures in millions, approximate)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
If you go...
Etihad flies daily from Abu Dhabi to Zurich, with fares starting from Dh2,807 return. Frequent high speed trains between Zurich and Vienna make stops at St. Anton.
%3Cp%3EThe%20Punishment%20of%20Luxury%3Cbr%3EOMD%3Cbr%3E100%25%20Records%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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