Chelsea 3 – 0 Wolves

Chelsea beat Wolves 3-0 at Stamford Bridge to go second in the Premier League table and add to the relegation fears of their managerless visitors.

The Blues had been booed off at half-time after struggling to turn their dominance into a goal in the first 45 but tore their visitors apart after the break. By the final whistle, their fans were in party mood, knowing their side are just six points off Arsenal, who were held at Sunderland earlier on Saturday.

Winless Wolves battled hard but were ultimately outclassed in a game which underlined the scale of the task facing Rob Edwards, if he completes his switch from Middlesbrough, following the sacking of Vitor Pereira. After 11 games, Wolves are eight points from safety and their suffering supporters sung about dropping into the Championship.

It was an unlikely goalscorer who eventually made the breakthrough for Chelsea six minutes into the second half. Malo Gusto headed in the first goal of his career on his 159th game in club football.

It was a milestone night for Joao Pedro, too, who slammed in a second soon after to mark his 100th Premier League appearance, after sub Estevao’s dribble and cross.

Alejandro Garnacho had crossed for Gusto’s opener and he was the provider of the third as well, showing a surge of speed to burst away from Santiago Bueno before crossing for Pedro Neto to score against his former side.

It turned into a chastening night for the visitors, who were coached by caretaker James Collins. It could have been worse, with Marc Guiu hitting a post among a number of other good chances for the hosts.

In truth, Chelsea should have taken this game away from Wolves in the first half, with Sam Johnstone saving well from an Enzo Fernandez free-kick and Garnacho one-on-one before a corner was cleared off the line and Joao Pedro dragged a shot wide.

Wolves, who remain rooted to the foot of the Premier League table with just two points, will hope for a rejuvenation during the international break. Meanwhile, Chelsea, who have had an up-and-down first part of the season, are handily placed before the hard winter stretch begins.

O’Neil: Wolves need a big reset

Former Wolves boss Gary O’Neil speaking on Sky Sports:

“I think it’s an interesting transition that they’ve gone through. Obviously they’ve lost big players in windows just gone. But they spent a lot in the last summer window. They backed Vitor [Pereira].

“So far, this team that they’ve put together has not been able to put results on the board. They’re in a transition period from the group that we had. A more physical group that maybe weren’t as technical. It’s going to need a big reset.

“Rob [Edwards] has already been in a great job at Middlesbrough so he must see something in this that gives him a good opportunity to work with this group and give them a chance to stay up in the second half of the season.”

Story of the match in stats…

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