Chelsea got themselves back to winning ways in the Premier League with a comprehensive 4-0 win over bottom-of-the-table Southampton. Enzo Maresca’s side had lost back-to-back games in the league but went ahead midway through the first half when Christopher Nkunku nodded home at the back post.
Pedro Neto’s near-post finish doubled the lead before Levi Colwill’s headed added a third on the brink of half-time. Chelsea continued their dominance after the break and added their fourth late on when man-of-the-match Marc Cucurella finished off a superb counterattack.
The win moves the Blues temporarily back into the top four, while the Saints remain rooted to the bottom of the table with just nine points. Relive all the action with Metro’s matchday blog below:. That’s all for our live coverage from Stamford Bridge tonight. Stay tuned across Metro’s website for all the reaction and analysis from tonight’s Premier League action.
Until next time!. Elsehwhere in the Premier League, it was a great result for one of London’s other clubs as Crystal Palace swept aside Aston Villa with a 4-1 win at Selhurst Park. Meanwhile, Fulham picked up a 2-1 away win at Wolves, while Brighton won 2-1 against Bournemouth.
A convincing win for the hosts who snap their three-match losing streak to temporarily move back inside the top four. But it’s another dispiriting night for Southampton who remain rooted to the bottom of the table. 90+1 mins: Four minutes of added time as Palmer eyes up a goal from a free-kick. It’s positioned centrally but Ramsdale stands his ground and pushes the ball away.
89 mins: Fernandez receives the ball from George and makes space well for the hit, but Ramsdale is equal to it and parries the ball wide for a corner. Another change follows for the hosts as 17-year-old Mheuka comes on for his first-team debut in place of Fernandez.
83 mins: A double change for Chelsea as Acheampong and Amougou come on for Nkunku and Caicedo. 81 mins: A rare foray forward for the visitors but Manning can’t find enough space for his shot which is blocked by the Chelsea defence. And it’s four!. Southampton win a corner but the hosts break with devastating speed through Neto. He slides in George who cuts it back to Cucurella and the Spaniard makes no mistake, drilling it into the corner with his left foot.
74 mins: We’re into the final 15 minutes at Stamford Bridge and Chelsea are crusing to victory. The home side knocking it about with relative ease with Southampton putting little pressure on the ball. 68 mins: Dewsbury-Hall and George on For Sancho and Neto as Chelsea turn to their bench. The youngster George is straight into the action but fires over from a tight angle.
67 mins: Manning’s delivery from a Southampton free-kick finds Bella-Kotchap in the area but the Saints defender can’t get over the ball and it balloons over the bar. 63 mins: A lovely touch and spin from Sancho but Neto gets it all wrong as he receives the ball from the Englishman on the edge of the box.
It bobbles out for a goal-kick and the chance goes begging. 59 mins: A double change for Southampton as Dibling and Manning come on for Onuachu and Walker-Peters. 56 mins: Another great chance from Palmer but he can’t keep the ball down after the ball is cut back to him inside the area.
A wry smile from Chelsea’s talisman – he just can’t find the back of the net tonight. 53 mins: Nkunku lets fly from range but it ends up in the stands. Chelsea still keeping the foot down, though, and clearly want more goals in this second half. 51 mins: Up the other end, Chelsea win a corner but Aribo rises highest to head the ball away before a handball from Cucurella gifts the visitors a free-kick.
49 mins: Sulemana makes a good burst down the left wing, but Gusto recovers superbly to tackle the ball out for a corner. 46 mins: And we’re back underway. One change for Southampton as Bree is replaced by Harwood-Bellis. Fourth time this season that Southampton have gone into HT in a PL match three or more goals behind.
That’s not going to keep you up, is it?. And that’s the whistle for half time and the hosts are crusing towards victory courtesy of goals from Nkunku, Neto and Colwill. Arrow MORE: ‘That would be perfect’ – Joe Cole tips Chelsea legend to become permanent Rangers manager.
