Batshuayi seals the deal
Forgotten man Michy the hero as Conte’s Blues clinch the title THE GOAL THAT WON CHELSEA THE LEAGUE...
MICHY Batshuayi has not scored many goals this season but, if you’re going to score one, it might as well be the one that wins the league.
And with eight minutes to go, too. Since Tottenham lost at West Ham, the title conclusion has felt a bit mundane.
Yet, seemingly heading for a draw, Eden Hazard removed and West Brom at last beginning to exert a little pressure, there was a degree of tension as the game entered its final straight. Well, as much tension as there can ever be when a team needs one win and still has Watford and Sunderland to play at home.
Enter Batshuayi, who last scored a league goal against Watford on August 20.
He took advantage of the defensive reorganisation caused by Gareth McAuley’s withdrawal, West Brom having failed to deal with a sliced shot that went into no-man’s land. Chelsea recycled it, Cesar Azpilicueta crossed and Batshuayi slid in to poke the ball past Ben Foster.
Queue lunatic celebrations. Batshuayi slid, again, down by the corner flag. So did David Luiz into the arms of Azpilicueta. On the bench, Antonio Conte leapt on to his staff with such abandon he may have suffered a cut lip.
This was the Chelsea juggernaut in full flow. This was Conte getting another call right. Batshuayi may be one of the biggest transfer disappointments of the season, but who will remember that now?
It would have been very easy for West Brom to coast here, to let Chelsea take the expected three points and the title. But Tony Pulis’ men take pride in their endof-season cussedness. A creditable eighth, they have little to play for, after all. Yet you wouldn’t have known it. They defended as if their lives depended on it and could even have taken the lead late on through Nacer Chadli.
West Brom frustrated Chelsea, albeit in the early stages Conte’s men showed whey they arrived here needing just a win to become champions.
The exquisite passing and vision of Cesc Fabregas; the delightful touch and poise of Hazard; a fine save after just 23 seconds by Thibaut Courtois; a great saving tackle by Luiz; the width; the counter-attacking; the speed of recovery. All that was missing was Player of the Season, N’Golo Kante, still recovering from injury and on the bench, and striker Diego Costa, who was present in name only in the first half.
If Costa does intend on moving to China this summer, his opening 45 minutes here suggested he was already in the first-class departure lounge.
His team-mates were intense, eager, willing to get the job done at the first opportunity. Costa seemed content to wait until next week’s home games. The best that can be said in his defence is that West Brom’s massed ranks made life awkward.
Yet Chelsea’s other front players found space, or at least looked for it. Costa dwelled behind a forest of blue-and-white shirts.
As for West Brom, a series of passes from kick-off climaxed with Scotland captain Darren Fletcher picking out Salomon Rondon, who rose above Luiz and headed the ball goalwards, thwarted only by Courtois.
From there, Chelsea took charge, Fabregas pulling the strings much as he did against Middlesbrough last Monday. It was his free-kick after eight minutes that produced Chelsea’s first chance of the night, Gary Cahill meeting it at the far post but steering it just wide.
The chances kept on coming. Fabregas squared to Pedro, who shot over after ten minutes. Fabregas’ free-kick from the right, hit by Pedro but deflected just wide. Hazard to Fabregas, whose shot bobbled the wrong side of a post from the edge of the area. Victor Moses to Pedro, another shot travelling wide.
With greater accuracy, Chelsea could have had the title won early. Instead, they headed down the tunnel at half-time still with it all to do.
West Brom’s James McClean was lucky his night did not end prematurely, having received a yellow card for taking out Moses after 20 minutes. He did it again soon after, not quite as bad, but worth a booking, and was fortunate referee Michael Oliver decided to be lenient.
He couldn’t be after Sam Field upended Pedro after 36 minutes to become the second West Brom name in the book. Equally, Chris Brunt got a let-off after 14 minutes when a Pedro cross struck his hand in the penalty area. It would have been a tough call, but not every ref would have given him the benefit of the doubt.
So it was rather bemusing when Oliver gave a throw-in West Brom’s way late in the half and the Hawthorns erupted in sarcastic celebration. The two yellow cards were justified, there could have been another, a penalty appeal was survived — it was hard to think what green the locals
thought they were not getting the rub of.
The second half began in much the same fashion, except Chelsea finally got a decent shot on target, Moses forcing the first real save of the night from Foster.
As Chelsea’s frustration began to show, Conte went for a final roll of the dice, taking off Hazard and Pedro late into the second half and replacing them with Willian and Batshuayi .
The stage was set for the most unlikely of title winners to strike. WEST BROM (4-5-1): Foster; Dawson, McAuley (M Wilson 64), Evans, Nyom; Fletcher, McClean (Chadli 59), Livermore, Field (Yacob 51), Brunt; Rondon. Subs not used: Robson-Kanu, Morrison, Myhill, Leko. Booked: McClean, Wilson, Field. CHELSEA (3-6-1): Courtois; Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill; Moses (Zouma 86), Fabregas, Matic, Alonso, Pedro (Batshuayi 76), Hazard (Willian 75); Costa. Subs not used: Begovic, Ake, Kante, Terry. Booked: None. Referee: Michael Oliver. Attendance: 25,637. Man of the match: Cesc Fabregas.