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6 months ago
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Chelsea kept up their chase for a European spot by hitting West Ham for five at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon.
Cole Palmer, Conor Gallagher and Noni Madueke all scored in the first half for the Blues as they looked to build on Thursday's victory against bitter rivals Tottenham.
Nicolas Jackson nabbed a second half brace, to extend Chelsea's lead over the Hammers in the Premier League table.
David Moyes' team look set to end their campaign in a whimper, whilst the Blues continue to rack up important points in their bid to climb the league.
Mail Sport's Kieran Gill analyses Chelsea, while Kathryn Batte looks at West Ham in the match ratings from Chelsea's huge win in west London.
Nicolas Jackson scored a second-half brace in Chelsea's 5-0 win over West Ham on Sunday
Djordje Petrovic kept a clean sheet for the Blues, but Jarrod Bowen hit the crossbar three times
Chelsea (4-2-3-1)
Djordje Petrovic 7
Superb save to stop James Ward-Prowse from scoring a consolation free-kick, though grateful that Jarrod Bowen could only find the crossbar not once, not twice, but three times.
Trevoh Chalobah 8
Defensively sound yet again, especially as he was up against the energetic Mohammed Kudus. Played at right back this time, after starring at centre back against Tottenham. Versatile.
Thiago Silva 8
Chelsea fans showed their appreciation for the 39-year-old Brazilian ahead of his summer exit but this was yet more evidence that Silva can continue to perform at an elite level.
Benoit Badiashile 8
Put in a few hard tackles, which prompted applause from Pochettino. Though Chelsea were thankful of the woodwork on a few occasions, Badiashile and Silva made for strong partners.
Thiago Silva proved himself at the elite level yet again despite his summer exit from Chelsea
Benoit Badiashile (left) and Marc Cucurella (right) enjoyed excellent performances in defence
Marc Cucurella 8
Good to see Cucurella playing with such confidence, moving into midfield from left back. Starting to show why Pep Guardiola wanted him for Manchester City in 2022.
Moises Caicedo 8
Caicedo was there to kill it off the odd West Ham counter while he won possession before setting up Jackson so that Chelsea's striker could complete this 5-0 hammering.
Conor Gallagher 8
Smacked his volley into the bottom corner for Chelsea’s second, before striking the crossbar when he hoped to add another. Staggering if this midfield machine is sold this summer.
Noni Madueke 8.5
Unselfish in setting up Jackson so that he could tap in Chelsea’s fourth, having already got their third goal for himself. Performance oozed positivity throughout. My player of the match.
Cole Palmer 8
Gratefully accepted the gift of a gaping goal to kickstart this demolition after dire defending from West Ham. Some of his balls in behind belonged in a museum.
Chelsea's £115m man Moises Caicedo (left) killed off West Ham's counter attacks throughout
Conor Gallagher was vital to Chelsea's midfield, scoring their second and also hitting the bar
Noni Madueke was the player of the match, with a confident performance in Chelsea's attack
Mykhailo Mudryk 7.5
Confidence is pouring out of Mudryk, which is great to see. Just a shame he could not get a goal or an assist to go along with his efforts.
Nicolas Jackson 8
Forever put himself in good positions and got his reward in the second half, scoring after Madueke’s show of unselfishness and then finishing his one-on-one so coolly.
SUBS: Christopher Nkunku (for Madueke, 76) – N/A, Cesare Casadei (for Mudryk, 76) – N/A, Axel Disasi (for Silva, 82) – N/A, Malo Gusto (for Chalobah, 83) – N/A, Alfie Gilchrist (for Palmer, 89) – N/A
MANAGER - Mauricio Pochettino 8
Another perfect result for Chelsea in their pursuit of a European place. Pochettino will have loved the teamwork vibe that accompanied this 5-0 win.
Cole Palmer gratefully accepted the gift of a gaping goal to kickstart this demolition
Mauricio Pochettino will have loved the teamwork vibe that accompanied their 5-0 victory
West Ham (4-2-3-1):
Alphonse Areola - 5
Could perhaps have done better with the first goal after getting a hand to it but could do little to prevent the subsequent Chelsea onslaught. Could have been a bigger deficit had he not produced some decent saves.
Vladimir Coufal - 3
A tough afternoon from start to finish. Carless in possession and too slow to get back in position when his team lost the ball. Gave Mykhailo Mudryk far too much freedom on the left wing and was lucky the forward did not punish him as often as he should have.
Despite conceding five goals, Alphonse Areola made some great saves to deny the Blues
Defenders Kurt Zouma (left) and Vladimir Coufal (right) both had tough afternoons
Kurt Zouma - 3.5
Not an enjoyable return to his former club. Inadvertently set up the first two goals with a poor clearance for Cole Palmer’s strike and a mistimed tackle for Conor Gallagher’s volley. Did improve slightly in the second half, but the damage was already done.
Angelo Ogbonna - 3
Was making his 200th appearance for West Ham but looked like a player who was far less experienced. Could not get a grip on Nicolas Jackson and let Gallagher go for the second goal. Was beaten time and time again when Chelsea played balls in behind the backline.
Emerson - 3
Another player who had a miserable return to Stamford Bridge. Given the runaround by Noni Madueke and was caught napping on too many occasions, including for the fourth goal. Wasted a great chance to pull a goal back in the second half.
Tomas Soucek - 3
May as well have been playing in defence he was so deep. Needed to get further up the pitch to support Edson Alvarez in the first half and James Ward-Prowse in the second. Gave the ball away criminally for the fifth goal, which summed up West Ham’s performance.
Edson Alvarez - 4
Chasing shadows in the first half as Moises Caicedo and Gallagher dictated play, but had little support from those around him. One of a number of players who could have been hooked at half-time and may feel a little hard done by that he was the one withdrawn at the break.
Jarrod Bowen - 6
Could have had a hat-trick had it not been for the woodwork, with the forward hitting the bar twice in the first half and once in the second. Kept trying to get his team up the pitch but had little support.
Edson Alvarez was unlucky to be hooked at half-time, and replaced by James Ward-Prowse
Michail Antonio had little support, and couldn't do anything with the ball when he got it
Lucas Paqueta - 3
Game passed him by for large parts and he cut a frustrated figure for much of the time he was on the pitch. Picked up his 13th yellow card in all competitions and his 10th in the Premier League with a wild tackle in the first half. Limped off with an injury before the end.
Mohammed Kudus - 5
Was the only other player alongside Bowen who looked half threatening going forward, but too often his runs and dribbles came to nothing. Drifted out of the game in the second half and saw little of the ball.
Michail Antonio – 4
Had very little support up front but could not make the ball stick when it did come into his feet. Let Thiago Silva go far too easily from the corner for the third goal, with the defender having a free header to set up Madueke to finish.
SUBS: Ward-Prowse (for Alvarez, 45) - 5, Ings (for Antonio, 70) - 5, Cresswell (for Paqueta, 76) - 5
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