- Steve Sutcliff
- BBC
English club Chelsea have revived their hopes of progressing to the top four of the English Premier League table, after beating Bournemouth 2-0, in the 17th round of the English Premier League (Premier League), at Stamford Bridge , Tuesday.
The victory came after Chelsea failed to win their last three matches before the league was suspended due to the recent World Cup in Qatar, which was attended by the England national team.
It took no more than 16 minutes before Kai Havertz scored the Blues’ first goal, following a cross from Raheem Sterling.
And after just about eight minutes, Mason Mount added the second goal in the 24th minute of the half of the game, and also celebrated his participation in the 150th game for the Blues.
And signs of satisfaction appeared on the face of Chelsea manager Graham Potter, who seemed pleased with his side’s splendid performance, especially during the first half.
And Chelsea could have increased the difference in the second half after a real chance that missed the German Havertz to improve the score with a third goal.
With this victory, Chelsea climb to 24 points, advancing to eighth in the table, six points behind fourth-placed Tottenham, having won seven games, drawn three and lost five games, and their players have scored 19 goals so far.
While Bournemouth remain 14th in the table, with 16 points, and have played 17 games, winning four, drawing four, losing eight, and their players have scored 18 goals.
Chelsea’s only downside in the match was the exit of right-back, Reece James, who was injured seven minutes into the second half, even though the match was his first appearance after recovering from a knee injury which had prevented him from participating with the English national team at the last World Cup in Qatar. .
The second half saw a dramatic improvement in Bournemouth’s performance, and there was a goal threat from the Blues, and goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga saved a dangerous ball from substitute Ryan Christie.
Chelsea come forward
Chelsea went into the game with many question marks over their performance under Potter, as they suffered three successive league defeats before pitting for the World Cup.
However, the team looked better and solid as if the break was in their favor.
There was harmony and apparent strength in the performance, especially from the combined performance of Raheem Sterling, James, Mount and Italian playmaker Jurgenho, while Havertz and Pulisic worked hard up front to score goals.
Slow start for Bournemouth
Bournemouth’s slow start hurt the side and they conceded two goals in the first half, and their players were unable to move play into Chelsea’s half during the first half.
Despite manager Gary O’Neill’s attempts to rectify the situation in the second half and fix the performance, he was unable to recover his two goals in the first half.