Hammers dent Blues’ top- 4 hopes
London, April 9: Chelsea’s slim chances of a top- four Premier League finish suffered another blow as Javier Hernandez salvaged a priceless point for West Ham in their battle to avoid the drop in a 1- 1 draw at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
The reigning champions now trail Tottenham and Liverpool by 10 points with just six games left to salvage a place in the Champions League next season.
Chelsea paid tribute to former captain and assistant manager Ray Wilkins, who died aged 61 on Wednesday following a cardiac arrest, before kick- off with a minute’s applause.
However, on the field they failed to deliver manager Antonio Conte’s call to “make a great memory” in Wilkins’ honour as a desperately disappointing season continues to fizzle out.
The hosts did go in front in scrappy fashion when captain Cesar Azpilicueta prodded Alvaro Morata’s knockdown past the flatfooted Joe Hart.
West Ham game went into the game on the back of a morale- boosting 3- 0 win over fellow strugglers Southampton last weekend to ease rising tensions between the board and supporters.
And they look well- set to save themselves from relegation as Hernandez’s strike moved David Moyes’s men six points above the drop zone in 14th.
Chelsea played a large part in their own downfall as Gary Cahill’s wayward header allowed Marko Arnautovic to pull the ball
back in the Mexican’s path to slam past Thibaut Courtois.
Hart was needed, though, to salvage a point for the visitors as he made brilliant stops from Marcos Alonso and Olivier Giroud in the closing stages to do his hopes of starting for England at the World Cup no harm.
WELBECK BACK IN THE GOALS
Sixth- placed Arsenal are now just three points adrift of Chelsea as Danny Welbeck scored twice and also set up Pierre- Emerick Aubameyang to continue his fine start to life in the Premier League in a badtempered 3- 2 win over Southampton.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger made seven changes from the side that beat CSKA Moscow 4- 1 on Thursday in their Europa League quarterfinal, first leg with Champions League qualification by winning that competition now the Gunners’ priority.
Another England World Cup hopeful was heavily involved as the injury- ravaged Welbeck netted his first league goals since September.