THAT’S MORE LIKE IT!
Chelsea heed Tuchel warning to rediscover spark
THE warning Thomas Tuchel delivered that their form between now and the end of the season will shape his summer plans was aimed at his strikers.
It was heard by his entire team on the evidence of their performance at Selhurst Park, as Chelsea produced one of near total dominance to return to fourth place in the Premier League.
They were inspired by one of the men Tuchel’s words certainly represented a challenge to, Kai Havertz,whoim pressed as a roaming false nine, scoring once — just his second league goal of the season and first since October — and setting up the first of two goals for the equally influential Christian Pulisic.
Mason Mount, the third member of Chelsea’s attacking trio, was another star performer.
Havertz might be disappointed that he did not leave with the match ball given the opportunities that came his way after he opened the scoring.
But, even still, this was more like the impact Chelsea would have expected from Havertz, the 21-year-old whose final fee could end up hitting a club-record £85 million.
The German — and rest of Chelsea’s front three for that matter — were far from alone though as they scored more than twice for the first time in the Tuchel era.
Yes, Crystal Palace were accommodating hosts, certainly for most of the first hour, but most sides would have struggled against Chelsea in this mood.
They were on it from the first whistle to last and back to front erring just the once when Palace scored a 63rd-minute consolation from their only attempt on goal.
After their shock blip against West Brom, Chelsea are back on track and back where they and Tuchel need to be in the league table, with one foot in the Champions League semi-finals too.
Tuch el said :‘ It was a well-deserved win with a strong performance. They found t he momentum. It was the performance where we created the most chances, the most touches in the opponents box and scored the most, so it’s not so hard to say [ that is the best attacking performance] but I’m happy with how we played.’
On Havertz specifically, Tuchel said: ‘He will never be our emotional leader. We don’t expect that. But he needs to show his quality.
‘It’s the moment now in the season, so many decisive matches coming, that you fight for your place. He got another chance to show he can do better than he did in Porto and he did this.
‘There is still room to improve in finishing. He can be more ruthless. He should have scored more but it was a goods te panda good performance .’ The first five minutes were an indication that there was a long night ahead for Palace. Chelsea kept the ball for virtually all of it. The next five minutes confirmed it, twice applying the scoring, final touch to all their possession.
Seconds after Pulisic’s near-post effort was kept out by Vicente Guaita, pinned-back Palace were unable to clear their lines, Ebere Eze was dispossessed by Havertz who traded passes with Callum Hudson-Odoi and took advantage of the time and space he was allowed in the box to bend the opener into the far corner.
One very quickly became two. From another spell of keep ball, Mateo Kovacic, Ben Chilwell and Havertz combined to set up Pulisic to slam Chelsea’s second into the roof of the net.
It was hard not to fear for Palace at times. s. Chelsea toyed with h them, the gulf in class obvious. Not only were they passing, moving and linking up all over the pitch brilliantly but they were tackling back k tenaciously whenever er required, barely giving ving Palace a chance to retain possession.
Nobody epitomised the confidence coursing through Chelsea better than Havertz, who almost scored a stunning Chelsea third. Jorginho picked him out with a ball over the top which Havertz controlled and lifted over the incoming Patrick van Aanholt with one jaw-dropping touch. All that was missing was the finish, Havertz’s volley as the ball dropped just too close to Guaita. The applause from the Blues continge contingent in the stands, fully appreciating the firs first piece of skill they ha had just witnessed, s said it all. The third goal Chelsea’ s dominance deserved did eventually come from fr Kurt Zouma’s to towering header to con convert Mount’s freekick. Mount and Antonio Rudiger could have sent Chelsea in 5-0 up at the break. Palace manager Roy Hodgson said: ‘ When you’re 3- 0 down at half-time which we were deservedly you’re staring down the barrel of a g u n . F o r t u n a t e l y we d i d n ’ t capitulate.’
Palace enjoyed a little more of the ball in Chelsea territory after the restart, pulling a goal back when Benteke rose above Chilwell to head in Jeffrey Schlupp’s cross.
But that just sparked Chelsea back into life. And after Havertz, Mount and Pulisic all went close, the in- form American restored Chelsea’s three-goal cushion with his fourth goal in his last three starts for club and country.
Hodgson added: ‘To give some credit, the players did better in the second half but the bottom line is we played against a Chelsea team we believed we could stretch and we’re on the back of a 4-1 defeat and needed s o me last-ditch defending to keep it down to four.’ CRYSTAL PALACE (4-4-2): Guaita 7.5; Ward 6, Kouyate 6, Cahill 6.5, Van Aanholt 6; Ayew 5.5 (Townsend 76min), Milivojevic 5, Riedewald 5 (McCarthy 59, 6), Eze 5.5 (Schlupp 59, 6); Zaha 5.5, Benteke 6.5. Booked: Kouyate. Subs (not used): Butland, Dann, Mateta, Mitchell, Kelly, Rak-Sakyi. CHELSEA (3-4-3): Mendy 7; Azpilicueta 8, Zouma 8, Rudiger 8; Hudson-Odoi 8 (James 76), Jorginho 8 (Kante 61, 6), Kovacic 8.5 (Ziyech 83), Chilwell 8; Mount 9, Pulisic 9, Havertz 9. Subs ( not used): Arrizabalaga, Alonso, Abraham, Werner, Giroud, Emerson. Referee: M Oliver (Northumberland) 6.