Chelsea began their Premier League campaign with a dramatic 2-1 victory over West Ham, in fiery London derby.
The Blues were dominant throughout the first half – going close through both Branislav Ivanovic and the mercurial Eden Hazard, who looks to be back to his best.
It didn’t take long however for Chelsea to take the lead in the second-half, as Hazard fired home a penalty – after Cesar Azpilicueta had been brought down inside the area, just a minute after the interval. Chelsea continued pressing the Hammers’ back line in search of a second goal – with Willian’s effort drawing a great one-handed save from West Ham keeper Adrian.
But the introduction of Dimitri Payet – not fully fit as a result of his exploits in the Euro’s this summer, changed the impetus of the game, as West Ham instead pressed for an equaliser. And it would be his corner that brought about West Ham’s equalising goal – as James Collins volleyed the ball in from ten yards out.
Chelsea then brought on Victor Moses, Michy Batshuayi and Pedro in search of a winner, with just ten minutes remaining. Pedro dragged a volley wide but just a couple of minutes later Diego Costa collected a Batshuayi header before rifling in a low shot from the edge of the area, to ensure that Antonio Conte walked away with all three points in his first competitive game.
