Pulisic and Giroud put Chelsea Back on Course
Chelsea returned to Premier League in style as they came from a goal down to win 2-1 at the Villa Park, they came from behind to beat relegation-threatened Aston Villa and strengthen their bid for a top-four finish. Frank Lampard boys dominated the first half but fell behind when Kepa failed to hold Anwar El Ghazi’s shot and Kortney Hause was on hand to bundle in.
Chelsea fought back after the break and turned the game on its head with two goals in as many minutes. Former Bundesliga man Christian Pulisic smashed Cesar Azpilicueta’s cross into the roof of the net to level the scores at the far post before Olivier Giroud drove in from 15 yards with the help of a slight deflection.
This `victory now means that Chelsea have sealed their fourth-placed Champions League spot they are now five-point above Manchester United who draw to Tottenham 1-1 and Wolves as well. Aston Villa, however remain in the relegation zone with just one point from safety after taking one point from their first two games back following the resumption of the Premier League.
Before the suspension of the league Chelsea thrashed Everton 4-0 and beat Liverpool 2-0 in the FA Cup fifth round. The signing of Timo Werner for next season will hopefully address Chelsea’s struggles to make the most of their opportunities but for now, Frank Lampard will hope his current forwards will use the striker’s impending arrival as motivation to be more clinical in the end-of-season run-in.