MY ACCOUNT
Christian Pulisic’s last-minute goal secured a 1-0 win over West Ham despite Chelsea’s lacklustre display at Stamford Bridge.
Thomas Tuchel’s team had lost their previous two home matches in the league and that poor form looked set to continue when Jorginho’s awful 87th-minute penalty was saved.
Yet West Ham had been reduced to 10 men when Craig Dawson fouled Romelu Lukaku for that spot-kick, and Chelsea made their numerical advantage count in the final minute of normal time.
Pulisic was the hero, slotting in from Marcos Alonso’s cross to get Chelsea back to winning ways at home.
A sluggish start from Chelsea allowed a much-changed West Ham to grow into proceedings, though neither side managed a shot on target in a drab first half.
Chelsea finally sparked into life shortly after the restart, Timo Werner seeing a goal-bound strike blocked brilliantly by Dawson after excellent work from Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Another fine Dawson block kept a Mason Mount shot out, with Werner only able to slice into the side netting on the rebound.
Werner seemed set to finally break the deadlock with 16 minutes remaining, yet the Germany forward failed to generate enough power to beat Lukasz Fabianski from close range.
Chelsea’s luck appeared to have changed when Dawson dragged down substitute Lukaku in the area, with referee Michael Oliver – after consulting the monitor – sending the defender off for denying a goalscoring opportunity.
Jorginho’s awful penalty straight at Fabianski looked to have let West Ham off the hook, but Pulisic swept home three minutes later to snatch victory.
What does it mean? Much-needed home boost for the Blues
Had Chelsea drawn, they would have only been three points ahead of fourth-placed Arsenal, albeit having played a game less.
That gap is now back to five points, though, with the Blues able to breathe a little easier in third. West Ham, meanwhile, have lost their last four away league games and are fortunate that fellow European hopefuls Wolves slipped up at Burnley.
Pulisic proves his worth
Pulisic had to settle for a place on the bench but replaced the wasteful Werner with 14 minutes left to play.
Whereas Werner had got just one of his five attempts on target, Pulisic made sure that his only effort of the game was the decisive one.
More Stamford Bridge misery for Moyes
West Ham manager David Moyes has never won in 17 Premier League away games against Chelsea (D7 L10). There is just one instance of a manager facing a side more on the road without ever winning, with Moyes also responsible for that (18 vs Arsenal).
What’s next?
Both teams are back in action on Thursday. While Chelsea travel to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the Premier League, West Ham have the first leg of their Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt.
