Five things we learned from Chelsea’s win vs West Ham, including Pedro Neto solution and Enzo Maresca’s proactiveness

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Chelsea came from behind yesterday to secure an important home win over London rivals West Ham.

The Blues ended up winning 2-1 against West Ham in Monday night’s Premier League fixture, which took place on the same evening as deadline day for the January transfer window.

The Chelsea player ratings versus West Ham highlighted several impressive performances in the league success.

As a result, Chelsea move back into fourth position in the league table as the race for Champions League qualification heats up.

• READ MORE: Enzo Maresca praises ‘fantastic’ Chelsea player after West Ham victory, ‘he’s very humble’…

Five things we learned from Chelsea’s 2-1 win against West Ham

Enzo Maresca is being more proactive with substitutions

Earlier in the season, Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca was often leaving it too late in matches to make changes to impact a game. We’ve noticed in recent games he’s looking to his bench a lot sooner, though.

It’s great to see the Blues manager being more proactive with his in-game tactics.

The hosts were trailing 1-0 to West Ham after a below par first-half performance. Interestingly, Maresca made four substitutions inside early in the second period, which did help turn the momentum of the contest.

Chelsea supporters applauded Maresca’s substitutions versus West Ham as he exploited the talent on the bench.

Levi Colwill’s poor form continues

Unfortunately, Levi Colwill put in the kind of performance this week that highlights the poor individual form he’s in right now.

Chelsea centre-back Colwill admitted he made a “terrible mistake” against West Ham. He held his hands up after gifting possession to Hammers goalscorer Jarrod Bowen to make it 1-0 to the away side at Stamford Bridge. Thankfully, his teammates bailed him out with an improved second-half display.

A worrying trend is emerging in Colwill’s game recently that he’s allowing errors to pop up much more frequently than a player with his ability should allow.

The 21-year-old central defender needs to fix up quickly before his starting position is questioned.

Pedro Neto needs to start in his best position

Pedro Neto, 24, was the Chelsea substitute who made the biggest impact against West Ham.

The Portuguese winger scored his fourth goal of the season across all competitions with a driven low finish to make it 1-1. Afterwards, Aaron Wan-Bissaka netted an own goal to decide the contest.

It’s blatantly obvious from watching Neto during his debut Blues campaign that he’s much more effective on the right wing than the left, mainly because it gives the licence to cut infield on his stronger left foot.

Speaking last week, Chelsea attacker Neto insisted he’s capable of improving his performances. We’d definitely urge Maresca to give him a run of starts on the right wing over Noni Madueke to see if he can deliver his word.

Chelsea should’ve signed a striker

It’s now eight consecutive league appearances for Chelsea frontman Nicolas Jackson without a goal, and we’re worried about where the next one will come from because he’s clearly struggling with confidence.

The 23-year-old attacker does a lot of great work on and off the ball, but he’s missing the cutting edge in his game right now in the penalty box.

Now that the winter transfer window has shut, the Blues missed their opportunity to sign another centre-forward. The more you watch Chelsea this season, the more obvious it is that they desperately need to sign a clinical striker.

Chelsea were actively looking to sign a striker in the January window, but missing out could cost them as the season progresses.

Tosin Adarabioyo is a steady rock

Tosin Adarabioyo returned to the starting line-up against West Ham, which seemed harsh on Trevoh Chalobah as he dropped down to the bench.

However, the 27-year-old central defender put in a really solid display at the back.

Yet again, Tosin looked assured and comfortable in the heart of defence. The highlight was a superb block in stoppage time from a Mohammed Kudus shot in the box to help hold on to three points.

Tosin doesn’t often get the praise following his arrival on a free transfer last summer, but his calmness and leadership in the XI shouldn’t go unnoticed.