Chelsea made lightwork of a seemingly condemned Southampton, defeating them 4-0 at Stamford Bridge to push Ivan Jurić’s side further to a return to the Championship.
Christopher Nkunku opened the scoring on 24 minutes, signifying an opening of the floodgates. Further goals from Pedro Neto and Levi Colwill put The Blues three to the good before halftime.
Marc Cucurella put the final nail in the coffin in the 78th minute, giving Chelsea their fourth and ending a miserable awayday for The Saints.
As it happened
Stamford Bridge was packed for a game which could have been the ultimate banana skin; Southampton may have sat dead last in the Premier League, but Chelsea had won only one of their last five games in all competitions. They calmed any nerves by taking early control, with Neto and Moisés Caicedo seeing a lot of the ball and Enzo Fernández looking to run from deep.
The Saints had pace on both wings, with Kamaldeen Sulemana having an early race with Malo Gusto, before Mateus Fernandes whipped in a nice delivery which Colwill had to head away, with Paul Onuachu lurking behind him.
Chelsea kept seeking out Neto on the right, but he was frequently cutting in and turning without really delivering. So, Jadon Sancho traded sides with him and immediately played a great ball into the area, but there was no one to finish.
Still, there was an element of nervousness about Chelsea’s play, as they lacked a focal point up front in Nicolas Jackson’s absence. The first shot actually came from Southampton, as Will Smallbone played in Onuachu, who smashed his strike high and wide. This caused a restlessness in the crowd; they could feel the nerves of their team and they were not impressed with their slow, often negative build-up play.
Suddenly, Fernández took the ball on the turn and played Cole Palmer through on goal, only for him to slice his shot wide. Minutes later, it was those two combining again, Palmer this time this forcing a save from Aaron Ramsdale. From the resulting corner, the ball fell to Nkunku at the far post to head Chelsea into the lead.
Embed from Getty ImagesGoals breed confidence and that was the case for Chelsea. They were passing quicker and the crowd were livening up. But The Saints still had a great chance when Sulemana burst past Gusto and stood it up to the back post, Jörgensen doing very well to palm Onuachu’s powerful header away.
Ten minutes before half time, Flynn Downes gave the ball straight to Nkunku, who passed to Neto with a sight of goal. He then smashed the ball past Ramsdale for 2-0. Yet again, Southampton were all-but down and out; this was the 63rd goal they’d conceded in the Premier League this season.
It soon became 64, as Chelsea made it 3-0 before halftime, when Neto’s free kick was met by Colwill to force home. Southampton needed to ensure this was not another battering, losing 5-1 to Chelsea earlier in the season and defensively, they were looking a mess once more.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe visitors started the brighter of the two in the second half, however a corner and a couple of crosses amounted to nothing. Soon, Chelsea had a corner of their own, with Nkunku’s header tipped over by The Saints’ keeper.
It was Chelsea to create the next big chance, as Sancho raced forward and slid Neto in, but he somehow let the ball run out of play instead of shooting with his right foot. Afterwards, Southampton failed to make the most of a decently placed free kick, as it was too high for the unmarked Armel Bella-Kotchap.
Tyrique George was introduced for the hosts, and he had a great chance instantly, smashing the ball over the bar from a tight angle. Seventy-five minutes gone, the game was fizzling out with the job done in the first half.
The away fans were in good voice, seemingly accepting the result and the prospect of relegation, but they were struck with a sense of Deja vu when George got down the right side and picked out Cucurella, who finished well for a fourth goal.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Blues made use of their youngsters, as Nkunku, Caicedo and Fernández were replaced by Mathis Amougou, Josh Acheampong and Shumaira Mheuka to see out the final few minutes. The latter almost scored with his first touch, as he headed straight at Ramsdale from a corner.
Four minutes were added on, and Palmer was desperately seeking a goal, but the closest he came was striking a free-kick from 30 yards which Ramsdale pushed away. Soon after, the whistle blew and Chelsea celebrated their victory.
Southampton remain on nine points at the bottom of the table, looking ever closer to the Championship and an unwanted record of lowest points total. With their FA Cup journey already over, they have a two week break before a trip to Anfield to face Liverpool. When it rains, it pours.
Meanwhile, Chelsea climb back into the top four with confidence from this performance and result. They also have a wait of over a week for their next game, when they travel to Copenhagen for the first leg of their Europa Conference League knockout tie.
The lineups
CHE: Jörgensen; Gusto, Adarabioyo, Colwill, Cucurella; Fernández, Caicedo; Sancho, Palmer, Nkunku; Neto
SOU: Ramsdale; Sugawara, Bree, Bella-Kotchap, Aribo, Walker-Peters; Fernandes, Downes, Smallbone, Sulemana; Onuachu