Blues beat Hammers to secure fourth place.

 

After fellow top-four contenders Manchester City and Newcastle lost over the weekend, Chelsea had to work hard for their three points against West Ham, who initially took the lead through Jarrod Bowen at halftime. 

Substitute Pedro Neto equalized for Chelsea in the second half, and soon after, Cole Palmer’s cross looped over Hammers goalkeeper Alphonse Areola, taking a significant deflection off Aaron Wan-Bissaka to gift the home side the victory. 

Bowen, who had been sidelined since fracturing his foot in a defeat by Liverpool on December 29, seized on a misplaced backpass from center-back Levi Colwill and finished past Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen to put West Ham ahead just before the break. 

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca brought on Neto and Marc Guiu early in the second half to turn the game around, and it was Neto who ultimately helped his team get back into the contest. 

Marc Cucurella did well to keep Neto’s deep cross in play, allowing Enzo Fernandez to shoot at goal.

Fernandez’s shot was blocked by Vladimir Coufal, but Neto scored on the rebound to equalize.

After finding their feet, Chelsea improved significantly and, following Wan-Bissaka’s unfortunate deflection, secured the win 10 minutes later. 

This result lifted Chelsea to fourth place with 43 points two more than Manchester City and Newcastle while West Ham remained in 15th place with 27 points.

Maresca hailed the win as an “important statement.” Chelsea entered this London derby in desperate need of a victory, having slipped from second to sixth place in just six weeks, gaining only six points from their previous seven games. 

However, with Manchester City suffering a heavy 5-1 defeat at Arsenal and Newcastle losing 2-1 at home to Fulham, Chelsea capitalised on the opportunity and solidified their top-four credentials with a strong second-half comeback.

“We are there, and hopefully, we can maintain this position until the end. Playing this kind of game in February, while still being in contention, is an important statement,” Maresca said. 

“It was a good weekend for us in terms of other results, and we knew that today was even better.”

The Italian manager had entrusted Filip Jorgensen with goalkeeping duties instead of Robert Sanchez, who was at fault for Erling Haaland’s goal at the Etihad Stadium last week. 

“At this moment, Robert needs a rest, and Filip was very good,” the Chelsea boss explained.

Unfortunately for Chelsea, it was Colwill’s individual error that led to their goal concession. 

This marked Chelsea’s fifth error leading to a goal in their last six league games, with only bottom-placed Southampton (17) and Aston Villa (11) having made more errors leading to goals than Chelsea (10) this season.

While West Ham appeared organised at the back, Chelsea’s best chances in the first half came from quick counterattacks. 

Noni Madueke curled an effort just past the far post after being set up by Nicolas Jackson. 

Enzo Fernandez and Jadon Sancho also missed opportunities after Madueke played them through in the box, and Hammers goalkeeper Alphonse Areola made a stunning fingertip save to deny a Palmer free-kick in the final moments of the first half.

However, early substitutions in the second half revitalised Chelsea, with Neto coming off the bench to create chaos in the West Ham box before scoring the equaliser in the 64th minute. 

Palmer then played a pivotal role in Chelsea, taking the lead with a touch of luck, and the hosts held on to their slender advantage, claiming what could be a crucial win in the Champions League football race.

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