5 Things Learned: Chelsea 2-0 Sheffield United | Premier League

Chelsea eased past Sheffield United in a convincing 2-0 win on Saturday afternoon.

Second half strikes from Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson were enough for Chelsea to defeat a relegation threatened Sheffield United in a comfortable win in the Premier League.

Chelsea started the game well at Stamford Bridge, dominating the ball and pressing aggressively. However, the Blues struggled to create any early chances with Conor Gallagher’s long range effort straight at Wes Foderingham the only attempt in the first 20 minutes.

Sheffield United fought back into the match, with Cameron Archer sending a scorching effort narrowly wide of Djordje Petrovic’s goal.

Chelsea continued to control the game, but could not muster up a goal before the break, with Nicolas Jackson sending an effort narrowly wide just before the interval.

Chelsea started the second half in the ascendancy and were rewarded for their persistence in the 54th minute, with Cole Palmer making the breakthrough for the Blues. A well worked Chelsea move saw Palmer feed Raheem Sterling down the right, before tapping in Sterling’s cross from close range to send Stamford Bridge into raptures.

Sheffield United were shell-shocked after the opener and conceded again soon after, with Nicolas Jackson doubling the Blues lead. Some good work from Cole Palmer in the box saw Gallagher and Sterling both scramble to put the ball in the back of net, before Jackson duly dispatched at close range from a Palmer cross.

Chelsea continued to search for goals, with Armando Broja missing a great chance from point blank range after some more good work from Palmer down the Chelsea right.

The Blues saw out the win comfortably, earning some much needed points as they aim to climb up the Premier League table.

Here are five things Absolute Chelsea learnt from the win in London.

1) A much needed win eases pressure on Pochettino

After back to back defeats, Chelsea delivered some much needed respite for their manager Mauricio Pochettino by delivering three points and a strong performance against Sheffield United.

The Blues looked to be in total control throughout the fixture, not allowing the away side any meaningful chances and dominating the ball for large periods of time.

There will certainly be tougher fixtures to come in the next few weeks, but with the busy festive schedule about to get into full swing Chelsea delivered a much needed boost to their morale as they aim to climb the table.

With the imminent return of Christopher Nkunku and Romeo Lavia to boost squad numbers, Pochettino will hope this result is the catalyst required to cause an upsurge in form.

2) Christopher Nkunku made to wait

With Mauricio Pochettino announcing in his press conference ahead of the fixture that Christopher Nkunku would be making his long awaited debut in the matchday squad, many Blues fans would have been excited to see the Frenchman make it on the pitch.

However, Blues fans will have to wait at least a little bit longer to see their new attacker in action with Pochettino opting to keep Nkunku on the bench against Sheffield United.

Some could argue with the score and game essentially finished at 2-0 that it was an optimal time to give some game time to Nkunku to remove some ring rust, however Pochettino clearly wants to protect his new player for as long as possible.

3) Cole Palmer continues to shine

Despite it being a poor season for the Blues so far this season, one bright spark has been Cole Palmer, who impressed again on Saturday afternoon.

After a relatively quiet first half, Palmer showed his mettle in the second period, stepping up for his side when they needed it most to bag a goal and assist to ease the growing anxiety at Stamford Bridge. Palmer showed real desire and attacking nous to get on the end of Sterling’s cross to give his team the lead, whilst his trademark composure was on display throughout – not least to set up Nicolas Jackson for the Blues’ second.

Palmer continues to grow in importance for his new team, and seems to be developing into a much needed talisman for Chelsea.

4) Djordje Petrovic grabs a clean sheet in his first start

After a brief cameo appearance against Everton last week, Djordje Petrovic made his full debut against Sheffield United on Saturday afternoon.

It was hard to learn that much about Petrovic during the match, with Sheffield United offering a fairly minimal threat to his goal. However the Serb was alert to palm away Gustavo Hamer’s long range free kick, showing his sharpness when required. Petrovic also looked comfortable with the ball at his feet, helping his team build out confidently from the back.

There will certainly be sterner tests for the young goalkeeper in the coming weeks, but it was a solid start for Chelsea’s man between the sticks.

5) Solid display from Levi Colwill

After a slight dip in form in recent games, Levi Colwill bounced back with a very positive performance on Saturday afternoon. With many clamouring for Ian Maatsen to start ahead of Colwill at left back after a few errors by the young Englishman in recent fixtures, he responded by dropping a highly composed performance.

With the attacking Mykhailo Mudryk ahead of him, Colwill defended the left side of the defence very calmly, not giving the away side a sniff whilst also showcasing some of his trademark long passing; displaying why his manager has kept him in the side.