February 26, (THEWILL) – Chelsea returned to the English Premier League top four with a comprehensive 4-0 triumph against bottom-placed Southampton at Stamford Bridge. The victory ended a disappointing run of three consecutive defeats across all competitions for Enzo Maresca’s team.
Christopher Nkunku opened the scoring with a header from close range after 24 minutes, while Pedro Neto doubled the advantage in the 36th minute following good work from Nkunku. Levi Colwill added a third just before half-time, heading home from Neto’s free-kick delivery.
The second half proved less eventful, with Southampton unable to mount any meaningful response. Chelsea completed the scoring when Marc Cucurella found the net after being set up by young substitute Tyrique George, adding further gloss to an already convincing scoreline.
The result moves Chelsea into fourth position in the standings, ahead of Bournemouth, Newcastle United and Manchester City, though the latter two clubs have fixtures scheduled for Wednesday. The London club now sits firmly in the UEFA Champions League qualification positions.
Southampton remain rooted to the bottom of the table with just nine points from 27 matches, their top flight survival hopes diminishing with each passing week under manager Ivan Juric.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
