- Chelsea scored three goals in eight minutes to hand relegation-threatened Southampton a heartbreaking defeat at home
- Olivier Giroud scores his first and second Premier League goals for Chelsea as he picked up the man of the match award
- Eden Hazard also got into the score sheet as he scored his 69th Premier League goal for Chelsea. Only Frank Lampard (147) and Didier Drogba (104) have netted more for the club
Chelsea secured a remarkable comeback victory with three goals in eight minutes as Antonio Conte's men beat Southampton in five-goal thriller at St Mary's stadium.
The Blues looked like they were heading for another defeat after going two goals down just after the hour mark. But Conte's inspired second half substitution helped the reigning champions stage a stunning comeback to break Saints hearts.
After dropping four points from their last two Premier League games against Tottenham Hotspurs and West Ham, Conte was forced to make some changes in his starting XI as Nigeria's Victor Moses was dropped for Zappacosta while Cahill came in for Rudiger.
But despite the reinforcement at the back, Chelsea still found themselves behind in the 21st minute as Dusan Tadic gave relegation-threatened Southampton the lead.
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Former Chelsea star Ryan Bertrand embarked on a dashing run at the left flank before cutting back to Tadic who scored from close range.
And despite both teams creating chances to score, the first 45 minutes ended 1-0 with the Saints heading into the tunnel the happier side.
At the start of the second half, things got worse for Chelsea as Southampton went two goals up just after the hour mark. Ward-Prowse's deep free-kick was cleanly met by the full debutante Bednarek whose half-volley went past Courtois in goal for Chelsea.
But the turning point for Chelsea came in the 61st minute as Antonio Conte made a double switch immediately after Southampton's second goal. Pedro and Giroud replaced Zappacosta and Morata respectively.
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With 20 minutes left on the clock, Alonso supplied a fine left-footed delivery into the box and Giroud was on hand to power in an unstoppable header from 12 yards out. From that moment, it was game on for Chelsea.
Five minutes later, Chelsea were back on level terms as Eden Hazard scored his 69th Premier League goal for the Blues. Southampton failed to clear their lines as the Blues delivered cross after cross. Willian then made a yard of space for himself down the left before laying off an intelligent cutback to an unmarked Hazard who did the rest from 10 yards out. A comeback was on the card from that moment.
And in the 78th minute, the comeback was completed as Willian played a free-kick short to Hazard whose cross was kept alive by Christensen before the ball eventually fell to Giroud. The French man finished low and hard into the corner from close range to get his double.
With four minutes left on the clock, Chelsea brought in Victor Moses for Hazard as Conte's men held on to clinch a remarkable comeback victory and keep their slim top four hopes alive.
Following the victory, the Blues move up to 60 points, just seven behind Liverpool and Tottenham who occupy the third and fourth positions respectively.
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Source: Naija.ng