Not long after Diego Costa’s cool finish put Chelsea 2-0 up at the KCOM Stadium, Antonio Conte was on the edge of his technical area bellowing at his new-look defence.
‘Clean sheet! Clean sheet!’ the Italian roared. This had been a long time coming.
Defeats to Liverpool and Arsenal, in which his side shipped five, had seen Conte’s honeymoon ended before the new man had chance to finish his first book at the side of the pool.
And to a manager who built his successes at Juventus and Italy on famously solid foundations, it must have been particularly galling.