Chelsea 2 – 1 West Ham United

Substitute Kai Havertz scored a late winner as Chelsea came from behind to record a dramatic victory over West Ham, who had a 90th-minute Maxwel Cornet equaliser ruled out.

The Hammers frustrated Chelsea in a first half that saw plenty of home possession but no shots on target for either side and looked to have executed their gameplan to perfection when Michail Antonio scored from a rare attack after 62 minutes.

The forward bundled in from close range after Blues goalkeeper Edouard Mendy failed to deal with a corner, but the visitors’ lead was wiped out 14 minutes later.

Chelsea, on the back of a record summer of spending and with £70m arrival Wesley Fofana making his debut had struggled to break down David Moyes’ side before Ben Chilwell snuck into the level from a tight angle shortly after coming off the bench.

It sparked a frantic finish, with Cornet almost winning it late on for the visitors, only to see his header come back off the post and the Blues immediately score themselves through a clinical Havertz header from Chilwell’s cross.

There was still time for more drama as Cornet pounced, but only after a foul on Mendy that was awarded once referee Andrew Madley consulted the pitchside monitor.

The most expensive transfer window from any British club in history is over and now the real business begins for Thomas Tuchel and his side, with the expectation of £255m-worth of new additions to deliver results.

Fofana was handed his debut after arriving from Leicester City for £70m in a side that also included statement signings Kalidou Koulibaly, Marc Cucurella and Raheem Sterling.

However, it needed two players bought in the previous two summers to spark Chelsea into life at Stamford Bridge after falling behind to a scrappy Antonio opener.

First Chilwell – jostling for that left-sided spot with Cucurella – showed his class with a smart touch and neat finish from a narrow-angle to pull the hosts level with 14 minutes remaining, and it was the England international who then provided the cross for Havertz to put Tuchel’s side in front in the 88th minute.

That good work was almost wiped out when Cornet found the roof of the net after another mix-up in the Chelsea defence, and there were relieved faces on the Blues side when the verdict was a foul on goalkeeper Mendy in the build-up.

It was a dramatic ending to what, for an hour, had been a dull affair.

Christian Pulisic has been used sparingly this season, though his USA boss Gregg Berhalter has tipped the winger to “prove everyone wrong”, and he had the game’s first shot in the 27th minute that deflected wide for a Chelsea corner, though neither side managed to hit the target until almost the hour mark.

That was a delightful volley from Jarrod Bowen that forced Mendy into a save, and from the resulting corner came to the goal – Mendy failed to deal with a flick-on, Declan Rice knocked it back across goal and Antonio nudged in from close range.

Tuchel was aggrieved, feeling there was a foul on his goalkeeper, but he was happy with the resilience his side showed, and the quality Chelsea could bring off the bench to turn the encounter in their favour is a sign of the strength in depth the lavishly assembled Blues now possess.

source – BBC