Chelsea returned to winning ways on Tuesday night with a much-needed 4-0 victory at home to Southampton.
Chelsea went into their midweek clash in the Premier League off the back of three defeats in their previous four top-flight matches, including the weekend loss away to Aston Villa. Thankfully, they put that right with a big win over the Saints.
Enzo Maresca’s side are up to fourth in the Premier League table after beating 20th-placed Southampton with ease. It’s superb news because the top five may get Champions League qualification.
The Blues had a three-goal advantage by half time after goals from Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Levi Colwill. Afterwards, Marc Cucurella added a fourth late in the second period.
Chelsea player ratings vs Southampton
Filip Jorgensen – 6
The big talking point with the team selection is that the goalkeeper retained his starting position despite Chelsea fans fuming at Jorgensen’s Villa performance. In the Southampton fixture, he was once again a hot topic for discussion. Remarkably, there appeared to be massive anxiety from within the Stamford Bridge crowd when he had the ball at his feet in the early stages, which is a concern moving forward. Apart from that, he did make a great save acrobatic save from a Paul Onuachu header on a fairly quiet evening.
Malo Gusto – 5
We’re still not 100 per cent convinced by Gusto, particularly when the right-back is defending 1v1. However, was a fairly comfortable game for him, like with the rest of the backline.
Tosin Adarabioyo – 6
Overall, Tosin had a fairly quiet time because the game was fairly one-sided. We did notice a few decent passes from the central defender with intent to break the lines, plus he was aerially dominant. However, it was his centre-back partner who chipped in to help out the attack.
Levi Colwill – 7
He scored just his second ever senior goal for Chelsea, powering in a header to make it 3-0 just before half time. As for his defensive work, it was quiet as he watched Tosin mop up a lot of the aerial duels.
Marc Cucurella – 7
It’s hard not to enjoy Cucurella’s performances this season because there’s so much passion and enthusiasm that goes into everything he does. In a game that the Blues dominated, the left-back showed some quality moments on the ball when he pushed forward to try help out his teammates up the pitch. Eventually, he scored the team’s fourth goal with a great low strike to finish off a team counter-attack.
Moises Caicedo – 6
Caicedo is usually at the heart of everything Chelsea do in their games this season, but this was a fairly uneventful night’s work for him at the base of midfield. He kept it neat and tidy without having to do much defensive work.
Enzo Fernandez – 7
It was a game tailor-made for Fernandez because he created at will and looked a class above against the opposition. He’s one individual whose level continues to be high, even though the results have been up and down.
Jadon Sancho – 6
Sancho played on the right wing versus Southampton, something he’s not done too regularly this season. He produced some decent creative moments, including some dangerous crosses and neat link up play. We’d still expect a bit more from him, though.
Cole Palmer – 5
It’s now seven games across all competitions without a goal or assist for Palmer, which is a record that people will continue to mention until it’s broken. He had a shot saved from point-blank range inside the box that looked destined for the net. As always, he did do some great individual things at times on the ball, but he’s just not getting the rub of the green right now.
Christopher Nkunku – 8
He opened the scoring on the night midway through the first half with a brave header from a corner kick. Even though it was his 14th goal of the season across all competitions, it was the first time he’s scored since mid-January in the FA Cup against Morecambe. Yet again, he looked a much more natural fit starting as a left-winger. Maresca insisted Nkunku can do better in Chelsea colours, so let’s hope this is the start of a scoring run. On top of his goal, he also assisted Neto’s goal with a well-timed pass.
Pedro Neto – 8
Like in the recent defeat to Villa, Neto started from a centre-forward position. Neto was brilliant in the Villa match, so it was great to see him follow that up once again with another busy and impressive performance. He made it 2-0 when his powerful left-footed finish fired past goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale. Also, he racked up an assist because it was his free kick that Colwill headed in.
Substitutions
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall – 6
He replaced Sancho in the 68th minute to get some rare minutes
Tyrique George – 7
The youngster came on as a substitute midway through the second half, using his time to make another positive impression. George filled into the Neto position down the centre of attacking, producing a couple of lively moments. He assisted Cucurella’s goal to make it 4-0 with a low cross.
Josh Acheampong – N/A
He came on in the closing stages for his first league appearance since January.
Mathis Amougou – N/A
The January signing came on for his Chelsea debut late on.
Shim Mheuka – N/A
The academy graduate earned his Premier League debut in the closing minutes.
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