March 11, (THEWILL) – In the wake of the whirlwind of media attention focused on Chelsea, due to the government sanction of owner, Roman Abramovich, the Blues’ first-team players were able to tune out all off-field distractions to win 3-1 at Norwich on Thursday.
The Stamford Bridge side had been in the news after the United Kingdom government sanction put the club’s future in jeopardy. Prior to kick-off, though, Thomas Tuchel played off short-term fears, and his players dutifully delivered.
Trevoh Chalobah leapt highest amongst a swarm of Norwich players to meet Mason Mount’s corner, and his header gave Chelsea the lead in the third minute.
Kai Havertz came close to doubling their lead moments later, but Tim Krul’s outstretched leg stopped him, and Timo Werner almost flicked in the ensuing corner.
Chelsea did not have to wait long for their second goal of the evening, with Havertz dancing away from the Norwich backline to set up Mount, who shot emphatically into Krul’s net.
The first-half chance for Norwich occurred when centre-back Christoph Zimmermann ventured into Chelsea’s half, and his speculative strike was diverted safely into Edouard Mendy’s clutches.
Andreas Christensen’s free header went the wrong side of Krul’s post just before the half-hour mark, which should have been a third for the Blues.
At half-time, Dean Smith made two substitutions in an attempt to reverse Norwich’s fortunes, but they continued to waste chances, with Mount testing Krul at his near post once more.
Norwich got further up the pitch as a result of Chelsea’s relaxed attitude, but they were unable to worry the apparently less involved Mendy.
The Canaries’ first genuine chance came midway through the second quarter, when Pukki’s deflected shot was pushed away by Mendy, and they were awarded a penalty after a VAR assessment revealed Chalobah had handled the ball in the build-up.
Pukki stepped up and tucked home from close range to give Norwich hope of a late comeback in a game they had all but lost. As the game entered the final ten minutes, Smith’s side had their tails up and were now making a good run for goal, with Pierre Lees-Melou going close.
When Mount zipped a teasing ball across goal, neither Havertz nor Timo Werner could get a touch on it and Chelsea again lost another great chance to completely wrap up the game.
Substitute Romelu Lukaku was unable to hit a cut-back from Ruben Loftus-Cheek on target minutes later. Chelsea did, however, score the game-winning goal through Havertz, who rocketed into the top corner to more than definitely secure the three points.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
