Taking a giant leap towards securing a top-six return, Chelsea claimed a 2-1 victory away at Brighton on Wednesday night.
Now on the cusp of booking a Europa League ticket, Mauricio Pochettino’s men opened the scoring just after the half hour mark as the record-breaking Cole Palmer notched a 22nd Premier League strike of the season.
Watching French international Christopher Nkunku come off the bench and calmly finish Male Gusto’s cutback 14 minutes after the restart, the Blues have now won all of their previous four appearances on the bounce.
Welcoming Bournemouth to west London for their final showdown of the season on Sunday afternoon, a single point will be enough to officially clinch their top-six spot.
Although Chelsea might have extended on their Premier League romp here, there was a sour note late on.
England international Reece James – who was playing just his second match of 2024 – was shown a straight red card after kicking out at Joao Pedro.
While ex-Manchester United Danny Welbeck might have bagged a late consolation strike for Brighton deep in stoppage time, the Seagulls are limping their way over the finishing line.
Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat means that Brighton have now registered just a single victory from any of their previous nine Premier League appearances.
On a night when Chelsea took a giant leap towards booking a Europa League spot, we have taken a look at the main talking points from the Amex.
Chelsea storming their way to a European return
While Pochettino might have failed to confirm if he would still be in the Stamford Bridge dugout next season, Chelsea are enjoying what has been a remarkable end to the 2023/24 campaign.
Although Wednesday’s guests might have opened the New Year seeking a minor miracle in their bid to book a crucial European return, the former Tottenham boss now finds the mood in his camp at a red-hot high.
Opening May with a rampant 6-0 victory against London rivals West Ham, the Blues have…
Author : Tom Dunstan
Publish date : 2024-05-15 21:54:50
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Author : soccernews
Publish date : 2024-05-15 22:34:20
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.