Chelsea got back to winning ways by easing past Stoke 4-0 on Saturday. The Blues went in front within a matter of minutes through Alvaro Morata, who scored what was his fourth goal of the season.
Pedro doubled Chelsea’s lead with a neat finish but it was Morata who completed the rout with two second-half goals that completed his hat-trick.
The win sees the champions move within three points of both Manchester City and Manchester United.
Here are four things we learned from the empathic away win.
Diego who?
It was an important afternoon for Morata, mentally more than anything. Stoke is notoriously a difficult place for any team to go. The Spaniard would have been desperate to make an impact with the game coming just days after the news that Diego Costa has finally sealed his return to Spain.
The hat-trick on Saturday was the striker’s way of reminding fans that ‘yes, I’m the main man here now’. Having the privilege of being the number one striker is something Morata has never had, but now he can flourish in that environment at Chelsea.
Credit where credit is due, so where’s Chelsea credit?
As I’ve said above, Stoke is a difficult place to go, especially this early in the season.
With that in mind, the Premier League champions have just won 4-0 away from home, without naming a full strength side, but if you had picked up a Sunday paper, or listened to any sports coverage over the weekend, you wouldn’t have known any different!
The focus remains on the two Manchester clubs, who appear to be ‘running away’ with the title race, despite Chelsea being just three points behind…
Christensen steps up again
Gary Cahill was rested ahead of this week’s trip to Atletico Madrid and David Luiz missed the game through suspension, so up steps Andreas Christensen.
The Young Dane once again proved his worth on Saturday with another impressive performance.
Stoke’s forward line can be a tricky one to contend with, without a routine number nine, they have the ability to create a lot of chances with a lot of fluid movement up front.
Christensen managed to lead from the back, alongside Cesar Azpilicueta and continues to give Antonio Conte a selection headache.
Hazard getting closer and closer
Conte hinted that Hazard could start on Saturday but the Italian is likely to have one eye on Atletico Madrid during the week.
The Belgian came off the bench in the second half after starting midweek against Nottingham Forest.
With that in mind Hazard could make the starting XI on Wednesday night and against a stubborn and well-drilled Madrid side, the extra bit of magic that Hazard possess will be key for the Premier League champions.
