Two goals by Conor Gallagher and Enzo Fernandez’s late third helped Chelsea to a 3-1 win against Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Monday night.
Crystal Palace were by far the better in the first half. They outshot Chelsea six to one, and made it count too as Lerma volleyed home a sensational effort to see the Eagles ahead on the half-hour.
But Chelsea improved after the break and it was another superb goal inside 90 seconds of the restart that saw them level, this time from former Crystal Palace loanee Gallagher.
The game looked to be meandering towards a draw – but two late goals from Gallagher (90+1) and Fernandez (90+4) saw Chelsea to the three points.
The victory sees Chelsea into the top 10 above Wolves with 34 points.
Crystal Palace, meanwhile, remain five points above the relegation zone.
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Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Gallagher said: “In the second half, the gaffer gave us more structure in their half of the pitch to try and create more chances.
“And having the two strikers to make more runs in behind to create more space which I think it did. It was really good from the manager and definitely helped us to play better.”
Also speaking, Chelsea manager, Mauricio Pochettino, said: “We were flat in the first 45 minutes, very disappointing. We need to react to the game. We need to avoid that and start a game like this so flat. Maybe there was a foul when we conceded.
“We started the second half really well and we scored. It was a tough game but I’m so pleased.
“We just want to build our confidence and realise we need to be more consistent. We used two strikers in between the centre-back and the full-back. We put Gusto and Chilwell higher and moved the ball quicker with Enzo in a number 10 role. It helped us score.”
On his part, Crystal Palace boss, Roy Hodgson, said: “From the way the fans were it seems they thought the same. Their support was really good.
“We shot ourselves in the foot to a certain extent. Our lead lasted one minute into the second half, it’s something we’ve talked about a lot and didn’t want to happen again. I think we were valued for the 1-1. The third goal for them was the match-winner.”
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