Bournemouth 1-3 Chelsea: Late goals from Benoit Badiashile and Joao Felix secure Frank Lampard’s side win
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Updated 06/05/2023 at 20:02 GMT
Benoît Badiashile and Joao Felix hit late goals as Chelsea beat Bournemouth 3-1 in the Premier League at the Vitality Stadium. Conor Gallagher had given the Blues the lead but Matias Vina would cancel that effort out. The win moves Frank Lampard’s side on to 42 points, moving them to 11th position in the table after 34 games. Bournemouth remain on 39 points after 35 matches.
Lampard tells players to 'have a beer' after win at Bournemouth
Late goals from Benoit Badiashile and Joao Felix earned Chelsea and Frank Lampard a hard-fought 3-1 win over Bournemouth.
The game was evenly poised heading into the final 10 minutes until substitutes Hakim Ziyech, Raheem Sterling and Felix made the difference to give Lampard his first win in seven games since returning to Chelsea in place of Graham Potter.
The result means The Blues are now mathematically safe from relegation in 11th, while Bournemouth remain 14th and at risk.
Both sides had chances in a brilliant game, with Bournemouth starting the brighter before going behind to the simplest of goals. N’Golo Kante picked out Conor Gallagher with a pinpoint delivery from the right and the Englishman steered a superb glancing header in at the far post in the ninth minute.
The hosts responded well to going behind and showed why they are one of the league’s in-form teams. Gary O’Neil’s side are well drilled at the back and capable of attacking with all the style of a team fighting for top honours, rather than feeding on scraps at the bottom.
Matias Vina’s leveller wouldn’t have been out of place in any fixture. The Uruguayan put the finishing touches on a stunning one-touch team move, curling an effort from the edge of the area past Kepa Arrizabalaga and into the far corner.
The second half was just as lively as the first, but it was The Blues who found themselves in the early ascendancy. Noni Madueke, in particular, proved a constant thorn in Bournemouth’s side and enjoyed the better of a game-long duel with Vina.
The 21-year-old is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the coming years when he sorts out his end product.
But for all Chelsea’s bark, there was little bite, and they were fortunate not to concede a penalty when Thiago Silva brought down Dominic Solanke in the 67th minute. O’Neil said in the build-up that sides like Bournemouth don’t get awarded penalties, and, on the evidence, he might have a point as VAR waved away the hosts’ strong claims.
And that proved pivotal as Bournemouth were punished late on against the run of play when Badiashile finished off a brilliant Ziyech cross in the 82nd minute, before Felix’s first-time strike put the result beyond doubt.
O’Neil’s Bournemouth travel to Crystal Palace next, while Chelsea welcome Nottingham Forest.
TALKING POINT – LAMPARD FINALLY ENDS CHELSEA DROUGHT
It was a long time coming, but Frank Lampard finally has his first win in his second stint as Chelsea boss. The Englishman has come under heavy criticism of late for his shocking recent record as a manager but had the courage to ring the changes today and must take credit for the substitutions he made, which proved decisive.
Such was The Blues’ poor form, there was talk of relegation in the run-up to the encounter at the Vitality Stadium. That can be put to bed now as the London club look to build on this momentum for the remainder of the season.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH – NONI MADUEKE
The winger was a real handful until he was subbed late in the second half. He caused Bournemouth all sorts of problems on the left throughout the game and terrorised Vina, who had the thankless task of marking him.
The Englishman let himself down a little when it came to his final product but what a prospect he is for the future when he tidies up in that department.
PLAYER RATINGS
BOURNEMOUTH: Neto (6), Smith (6), Senesi (6), Kelly (6), Vina (7), Rothwell (6), Lerma (7), Ouattara (7), Billing (7), Christie (7), Solanke (6)… SUBS: Cook (5), Brooks (N/A), Semeyo (N/A), Anthony (N/A).
CHELSEA: Kepa (6), Badiashile (8), Chalobah (6), Silva (6), Chilwell (6), Kante (7), Fernandez (6), Gallagher (8), Madueke (8), Havertz (6), Mudryk (5)… SUBS: Felix (7), Loftus-Cheek (5), Sterling (6), Ziyech (6), Azpilicueta (5).
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
9' - GOAL! CHELSEA LEAD 1-0: The Blues open the scoring with the simplest of goals. Kante has the ball on the right and whips in a brilliant delivery onto Gallagher's head and the midfielder steers it into the far corner. 1-0!
21' - WHAT A GOAL! BOURNEMOUTH ARE LEVEL: Eat your heart out Manchester City. A series of one-touch passes sets up Vina, who shifts the ball out of his feet and curls it into the far corner from just outside the box. One for the highlight reel. 1-1!
31' - SIDE-NETTING: Havertz, Gallagher and Madueke work the ball brilliantly in a tight space on the right, before the latter skins Vina and gets to the byline. He assesses his options and opts to take the shot on from a tight angle, firing straight into the side-netting.
68' - NO PENALTY: Solanke nipped in ahead of Silva and was brought down. It didn't look like the Brazilian made any contact with the ball so it's surprising to see the penalty not given by VAR. Could be a huge call.
79' - WHAT A MISS: Lerma cushions a brilliant header for Ouattara from a Cook cross. The Bournemouth player is yards out with a clear sight of goal and somehow sends his header over the bar!
82' - GOAL! BIADIASHILE RESTORES CHELSEA'S LEAD: Against the run of play, The Blues are ahead. Ziyech delivers a superb deep ball from a free-kick and Badiashile is on hand to volley it home, although Neto will be disappointed having got a hand to it. Lampard is on the verge of his first win on his second stint as Chelsea boss. Can they hang on?
86' - GOAL! FELIX PUTS IT BEYOND DOUBT: Sterling runs at the Bournemouth defence before teeing it up on the inside for Felix. The Portuguese is just on but shows no signs of rust, placing a superb first-time shot past Neto to make it 3-1.
KEY STATS
- This is Frank Lampard’s first win as a manager over Bournemouth.
- With Vina’s strike, the last 11 home league goals for Bournemouth have been scored by eight different players.
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