Full Time: Swansea City 0-1 Chelsea

Chelsea emerged unscathed with a 1-0 win against Premier League strugglers Swansea City at Liberty Stadium this Saturday.

Although it was a much-needed victory to fuel the club’s hopes of securing a top-4 finish, Chelsea’s performance, on the whole, was a tad disappointing.

Cesc Fabregas scored an early goal to put the visitors in the driver’s seat but from thereon, Chelsea’s attack looked increasingly blunt. Swansea failed to pose much of a threat in the initial stages but as time wore on, the club did take quite a few chances in the last few minutes.

Luckily for the Blues, they managed to hold them off. That said, let’s take a look at how our players fared against Swansea.

Chelsea Player Ratings

Thibaut Courtois – 7/10

After enjoying an easy first-half, Courtois did have a few nervy moments in the final few minutes. Overall, it was a good show and his ball distribution was admirable once again.

Cesar Azpilicueta – 7.5/10

Azpilicueta proved to be a reliable presence for us at the back like always. He was quite vigilant to keep trouble from Swansea at bay, particularly when it came to Andre Ayew.

Gary Cahill – 7/10

Made a few risky tackles but besides that, he performed well and put in a solid shift.

Antonio Rudiger – 6/10

Struggled against the Ayew brothers on certain occasions and looked a bit shaky.

Victor Moses – 7.5/10

Got forward quite a bit and even got close to scoring. It was a decent display from Moses, who went on to pick up a booking for tripping Martin Olsson.

N’Golo Kante – 8/10

Won the ball for us on several occasions and maintained possession to put in a fluid performance at the heart of the midfield.

Cesc Fabregas – 7.5/10

Scored the only goal of the game and made some important late runs into the box to facilitate attacks. He seems to thrive in a 3-5-2 formation.

Tiemoue Bakayoko – 6/10

After a disappointing start, Bakayoko grew into the game. Although he got his basics right, there was nothing extraordinary about his performance.

Emerson Palmieri – 7/10

A splendid display from Palmieri, who impressed on both fronts. Fought hard at the back and also provided momentum while going forward.

Eden Hazard – 8.5/10

Hazard continues to be rock-solid for Chelsea. Provided the assist for Fabregas’ goal and he started as one of the forwards in the 3-5-2 formation.

Olivier Giroud – 7.5/10

Started ahead of Alvaro Morata and he linked up well with Hazard. It was a good show from the towering Frenchman but it is unfortunate that he could not get a goal.

Subs:

Willian – 6/10

Stuck to the basics but he came on too late to make a significant impact.

Pedro – N/A

Like Willian, Pedro tried to make things work but there was simply not enough time.

Alvaro Morata – N/A

Was caught offside in an attacking run and that sums up his contribution.

Antonio Conte’s men bounced back from the defeat at West Ham in style, with a very comfortable 3-1 victory against a Huddersfield side that had won three of their previous four home league games.

France midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko’s second Premier League goal set us on our way as he clipped the ball beyond Jonas Lossl after the Huddersfield keeper had slipped in the wet conditions when attempting a clearance.

Brazil winger Willian doubled the lead before the interval with a header, before teeing-up Pedro to hammer the third goal. Lossl’s slip that led to the first goal was unfortunate but the defending for Willian’s goal was poor, and Pedro was unmarked when he fired home.

There could have been more, but at the other end, Thibaut Courtois was denied a first clean sheet in four outings by a goal which was conceded in the dying minutes.

Substitute Laurent Depoitre headed in a late consolation but Huddersfield were beaten fair and square.

The win moves us level with second-place Manchester United, who host Bournemouth tonight at Old Trafford.

After the final whistle, Chelsea’s official Twitter account posted a tweet to which our fanbase reacted very happily. This is how the fans reacted to the result:

Back to winning ways 💙

— Alex (@Alexguazzelli) December 12, 2017

Good game, feeling excited! Well done blues👏🙌

— Gracey (@grace1670) December 12, 2017

Willian Bakayoko alonso performing after under fire. Elite mentality! Well done boys

— Daniel (@dannywicfam) December 12, 2017

Waiting for the Instagram story be like… 😂😝 pic.twitter.com/HDz2dS3p8H

— Jayesh (@geezerboy) December 12, 2017

Nearly a perfect performance 😟 Still, three points! 😃 We just need United to drop some points now. Well played Chels 👏🔵

— Tom Andrews (@CarefreeTom_182) December 12, 2017

Wassup with David Luiz, is he on strike or sth?

— Blu (@Blu86600593) December 12, 2017

Great performance +3 points #KTBFFH 💙💙💪

— sara ali (@sara_sy89) December 12, 2017

Well done Lads. Great spirit showed out there. Though the clean sheet wasn’t obtained but it was an awesome all round performance.

— Yusuf Musa (@Specialslim_1) December 12, 2017

Too much plastic fans around, despite the team won, they are still complaining of clean sheet, imagine if it was goalless draw, you would see them crying around here sack Conte. Well done boys!! On to the next👊🏽 #KTBFFH

— Jerdi (@jerdi07) December 12, 2017

Great performance by the lads but annoying to not get the clean sheet at the end… on to the next at the bridge! COYB🔵

— Isak Ibrahim (@IsakIbrahim5) December 12, 2017

@TimoeB08 finally Bakayoko

— mwasmimo (@mwasmimo) December 12, 2017

Currently standing at first place in the division, Chelsea have gone on to secure the Christmas Day top spot with room to spare as Diego Costa scored an impressive goal in the 1-0 victory against Crystal Palace on Saturday 17^th December.  Costa’s header at 43 minutes into the game was the sixth goal for the striker in his last eight games, his 50^th goal for Chelsea overall, and provided Antonio Conte’s side with a third consecutive 1-0 win. Once again, Chelsea delivered a controlled and effective performance that they have become so well-known for this season, giving Palace a very slim chance of getting back into the game once they fell behind and began to struggle.

Constant Improvement

According to Chelsea manager Conte, the run is ‘fantastic’. He went on to make a point of telling people to congratulate the players rather than him, and said that they deserve the victories. But, Conte is well aware that the Blues are not completely out of the danger zone yet. He said that it was important for his team to understand that they are only at the 17^th game of the season, and that looking at the table is not as important as focusing on constant improvement.

Chelsea have managed to match their record of eleven consecutive wins from April-September in 2009, managing to achieve the feat within the same season for the first time, and ensuring that they remain on course to beat Arsenal’s all-time record of 14 wins. However, the game was not faultless, even though the only blemishes came in the form of yellow cards for both Costa and N’GoloKante, meaning that both players were suspended for the next match against Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge.

Huge Differences

The victorious match marked the first anniversary of Mourinho’s dismissal as the Blues manager, and it’s striking to see the contrast between now and then when it comes to the club’s performance and results. At this time last year, Crystal Palace were in 6^th position, and were at this point a huge eleven points ahead of Chelsea, who were at the time in danger of being drawn into a relegation battle. But, 2016 has started badly and gotten worse for Palace, as if replicated over a whole season, their dismal run over the calendar year would surely have seen them relegated.

Palace Disappointed

Whilst Palace may have been defeated yet again, manager Alan Pardew said that it was a ‘strong performance’ even though the players didn’t deliver anything. Meanwhile Conte decided to restore NemanjaMatic in Cesc Fabregas’ place, despite the midfielder’s impressive scoring of the match-winning goal at Sunderland previously in the week. After missing the Sunderland clash due to an injury, Eden Hazard was also back on the pitch, with Rodriguez making way for Willian. Palace enjoyed some long periods of possession in the first half of the game, however, Conte’s side managed to hold them at arm’s length for long enough before Costa was able to strike.

Until then, it was Palace who had the better chances, with Jason Puncheon missing a clear opportunity when he messed up a first-time shot wide from Kelly’s right-wing cross. At two minutes before half-time the home side seemed to lose some concentration, making it easy for Costa to swoop in with a routine move that managed to put the visiting team ahead.

What do you think of the differences between this season and last at Stamford Bridge? We’d love to hear from you in the comments.

Chelsea laboured to a narrow 1-0 triumph over West Brom at Stamford Bridge and returned back to the summit of the league. The match also saw big names like Frank Lampard, Joe Cole and Andrea Pirlo in the stands. It didn’t seem like a tough contest before the game yet the home side were made to work as the Baggies were resilient and well-organised both mentally and physically. It was appearing to remain as a frustrating afternoon for Antonio Conte’s men till the 76^th minute when Diego Costa blasted home his 12^th goal of the season and the only goal of the match. A clean sheet tagged along as a bonus.

Drill down for player ratings:

Thibaut Courtois 7 – The towering goal guardian had a quiet afternoon for most part of the match yet made some decent saves when called upon.

Cesar Azpilicueta 7 – Once again the Spaniard was a reliable kingpin in Chelsea’s defence. Casually moved into a right-back after the tactical switch and remained composed.

David Luiz 6 – The Brazilian was constantly troubled by Salomon Rondon yet fortunately the striker didn’t punish him. Wasted a number of free-kick chances too.

Gary Cahill 7 – Stuck to his task well of nullifying any possible threats from The Baggies.

Victor Moses 6 – Chelsea’s most improved player worked hard as always but couldn’t hit his full potential as he was well escorted by Matt Philips.

Marcos Alonso 6 – Similar to his fellow wingback, another victim of West Brom sitting deep. Likewise, he kept the opponents quiet whenever they look to maraud forward.

N’Golo Kante 6 – Made a pointless foul and got himself his fourth yellow card of the season. Industrious at the heart of the midfield.

Nemanja Matic 7 – Returned back to the side and was overall impressive. Shielded the backline and governed the midfield with function and flair.

Pedro 6 – The former Barcelona man was out-muscled by the compact West Brom defence. Failed to step up his game and was subbed off in the hour mark.

Eden Hazard 7 – Plenty of movement with and without the ball yet the Belgian failed to grind out a final product. Surely frustrated for not working the goalkeeper.

Diego Costa 8.5 – No doubt, Chelsea’s best player of the match, if not the season. His sheer determination and strength to rob possession off Gareth McAuley before rifling the ball into the top corner of the net was nothing but remarkable. His 12^th goal of the campaign and it doesn’t look like he’s going to slow down anytime soon.

Substitutes

Willian 6 (came on for Pedro in the 63^rd minute) – Similar story of most Chelsea attackers, did plenty of running but well-marked by the Baggies.

Cesc Fabregas 6 (came on for Moses in the 74^th minute) – His long pass created havoc in the visitors’ defence before Costa scoring the winner.

Branislav Ivanovic 5 (came on for Hazard in the 78^th minute) – The Serbian helped his side to defend the lead.