LONDON (REUTERS) - Goals from Olivier Giroud, Eden Hazard and Ruben Loftus-Cheek and an impressive first Premier League start by Callum Hudson-Odoi earned Chelsea a 3-0 win over Brighton and Hove Albion on Wednesday (April 3), boosting their chances of a top-four finish.
The comfortable victory from the home side, which moved Chelsea fifth and level on points with Arsenal above them, also eased pressure on coach Maurizio Sarri after some fragile recent performances.
Local boy Hudson-Odoi, who last month made his first start for England but has struggled to feature for Chelsea, created the opener when he crossed for World Cup winner Giroud to score with a flick of the outside of his boot in the 38th minute.
Belgium's Hazard made it 2-0 on the hour when he collected a pass from Loftus-Cheek and curled a shot from the edge of the box past Mat Ryan. Three minutes later, Hazard repaid the favour, feeding Loftus-Cheek to fire home.
The 18-year-old Hudson-Odoi, who has been courted by Bayern Munich and the object of keen interest at home and abroad, proved lively and influential throughout the match. "Callum now is ready to play every match and also the most difficult matches because he has improved a lot throughout the season," Sarri said.
"It's impossible to be at the top when you are 18 so he can improve, he needs to improve and then he can become one of the best players in Europe." Sarri also singled out fellow Academy graduates Loftus-Cheek and Danish defender Andreas Christensen as players who are making their mark.
"They are at the moment very important players but the potential is there so in the future they can become top players. I think for this team the future can be good," he said.
"Sometimes it is difficult to keep young players because when they are under 18 they can sign only for two years." Chelsea overtook Manchester United to sit fifth in the Premier League on 63 points, level with Arsenal who have a game in hand, and one point behind Tottenham Hotspur in the chase for places in next season's Champions League.
Brighton, fighting to avoid being dragged into the relegation fight, remain 15th, five points above the drop zone.
Serie A » News » Boateng set for shock Barcelona move - reports
Dec 22, 2017 · Jurgen Klopp put a productive spin on Liverpool's disappointing day at the "Today we make individual mistakes and that is not cool." That led a dry spell which pushed the side as low
Klopp urges Liverpool to overlook past agony in front of
Crystal Palace all but banished any lingering relegation fears as captain Luka Milivojevic fired home a late penalty to secure a 1-0 Premier League victory at Newcastle on Saturday.
Milivojevic penalty seals Palace win at Newcastle - Reuters
Football: Man City surge clear through Sterling as Spurs suffer
Football News -BARCELONA (AFP) - Ivan Rakitic has said Lionel Messi's desire to win the Champions League is proving an inspiration for Barcelona ahead of their Champions League semi-final first
Messi's motivation spurs on Barcelona, says Rakitic
Maurizio Sarri has downplayed Pep Guardiola's suggestion that Chelsea are still in the Premier League title race as he prepares his team to face leaders Manchester City on Sunday. The 60-year-old Italian said his side were "lucky" to beat City in December when they ended the champions' 21-match unbeaten run with a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge.
EPL: Chelsea Not In Premier League Title Race, Says Sarri
Football: Australian Joe Palatsides set to replace Belgian
Spurs beaten for first time in new stadium; Saints stay up by Michail Antonio ensured West Ham United became the first visiting team to win at Tottenham Hotspur's new stadium as Mauricio
Football: Returning Ozil has Arsenal future says Emery
Real Madrid Kit 2019/20: First Images of Los Blancos' Classy New Home Strip in Store Jamie Clarke 22 May 2019 Pictures have emerged Real Madrid's new home kit in a shop, with the 2019/20 home
Kevin De Bruyne jokes about Eden Hazard's move to Real Madrid
Refreshed Croatia win with attack-focused play ZAGREB • Like Germany's Joachim Low, Zlatko Dalic has also opted to rebuild his squad following last year's World Cup and the Croatia coach was delighted with his new-look team on Thursday.
The Straits Times - Breaking News, Lifestyle & Multimedia News
0 comments:
Post a Comment