Stephan
El Shaarawy struck twice, including the fastest goal of this season's Champions
League after just 39 seconds, to help thrust AS Roma to the top of their
Champions League group with a convincing 3-0 win over lacklustre Chelsea on
Tuesday.
Following
the sides' thrilling 3-3 draw in London two weeks earlier, the Italian
international striker's brace was the highlight of another impressive display
from Roma which allowed them to leapfrog the English champions at the summit of
Group C.
El
Shaarawy's thunderous first-minute shot was the earliest recorded in any match
in the competition this term and, despite Chelsea creating early chances,
Antonio Rudiger's defensive indecision allowed him to nip in for a neatly-taken
second after 36 minutes.
Not
for the first time this season, Chelsea again looked uncharacteristically
disorganised at the back as Diego Perotti thrashed home a third after 63
minutes to move Roma on to eight points, one clear of Chelsea, who slip to
second.
After
the thrilling fare between the two sides at Stamford Bridge, the one-sided
nature of the return, which saw Chelsea suffer their biggest defeat under
Antonio Conte since their 3-0 loss at Arsenal last season, was a sign of
unsettled times for the Italian.