Chelsea were made to work hard for their three points at Stamford Bridge last night as they returned to the top four of the Premier League with a 2-1 win over West Ham.
Levi Colwill’s mistake handed Jarrod Bowen the opportunity to open the scoring in the first half, however Pedro Neto stepped up when needed with a superb performance off the bench.
A deflected Cole Palmer strike eventually wrapped up all three points for the Blues, who withstood some late pressure from their opponents to hold on.
Enzo Maresca was forced to make a number of big calls both before and during this game against the side he used to work as a coach at, and will no doubt have been feeling the pressure of a former Chelsea manager looking to spoil the party in Graham Potter.
One of those decisions made was who would start between the sticks, with the boss finally making the call to replace Robert Sanchez after a string of errors this season.
Filip Jorgensen was handed the start instead, and impressed between the sticks despite not keeping a clean sheet at Stamford Bridge.
| Filip Jorgensen vs West Ham | Total |
| Minutes | 90 |
| Saves | 4 |
| Accurate passes | 22 |
| Recoveries | 8 |
Former Chelsea star Gianfranco Zola was full of praise for Maresca’s decision to change the goalkeeper at a key moment of the season, saying it showed a bravery that they needed.
He said to Sky Sports Premier League: “He has been brave changing the goalkeeper. I think Maresca is making the decisions that need to be made. Things are going in the right direction. You can’t always play perfect football.”
Chelsea interested in signing a new goalkeeper
Despite Maresca being defiant in his defending of Sanchez to the media this season, reports have claimed not everyone is of the same opinion.
It has been claimed chiefs at Chelsea would prefer a new goalkeeper to take them to the next level, with a number of names being mentioned as potential targets.
One of those targets is Gregor Kobel, who has enjoyed a stellar spell at Borussia Dortmund over the last few seasons, featuring alongside Jadon Sancho in the last campaign.
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