Southampton 0-6 Chelsea
by Dom Smith
at Saint Mary’s Stadium

CHELSEA needed a statement performance to ease the pain after their week from hell. They delivered that, plus a statement scoreline too. Their hosts Southampton were wretched throughout, gift-wrapping Chelsea’s three points and delivering them shamelessly on a silver platter.

On an ordinary afternoon of football, the most impressive feat of the first half would have been Timo Werner somehow managing to strike the left post, right post and even the crossbar.

But there was nothing ordinary about this. Chelsea were three up and coasting on the South Coast within 20 minutes, and the goals kept on coming as Thomas Tuchel’s rampant Blues filled their boots on a dismal day for the hosts.