Chelsea 3-2 Luton Town (30 Dec, 2023) Game Analysis،
Chelsea survived a late Luton Town fightback to return to winning ways on the road on Saturday with a 3-2 win at Kenilworth Road, Cole Palmer scoring twice either side of a fine Noni Madueke strike.
The expensively assembled Blues had lost their previous four Premier League away games but looked certain to take all three points as they led 3-0 with just over 10 minutes of normal time remaining.
– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (US)
– Chelsea ratings: Palmer gets 9/10 for his winning display
Palmer put the Blues ahead in the 12th minute when he capitalized on a mistake by Luton defender Issa Kaboré to unleash a fierce angled shot which flew past Thomas Kaminski.
Palmer was at the heart of Chelsea's second goal in the 37th minute when he was found by left-back Levi Colwill on the break, and the former Manchester City man threw on Madueke, who created just enough space to shoot high into Kaminski's net.
It was the second goal in two games for the winger who came on as a substitute on Wednesday against Crystal Palace to score a winner from the penalty spot in a 2-1 victory for Chelsea.
In the 70th minute the visitors looked to have dealt the final blow to Luton when Nicolas Jackson split the home defense to find Palmer, who kept his cool to round Kaminski and hold off a group of defenders to make it 0-0. 3 for visitors.
Former Chelsea midfielder Ross Barkley scored what looked like a consolation goal for the hosts when he headed in an Alfie Doughty corner in the 80th minute.
Seven minutes later, Elijah Adebayo reduced the deficit to a single goal, but Luton were unable to equalize despite almost incessant pressure in the final moments, supported by their supporters in their small stadium.
“For us, at 3-0, the game seems over, but in the Premier League it's never over,” Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino told the BBC.
“We need to be more capable in handling this type of situation. When you have something in your hands, you don't want to lose it and you go further.”
Luton manager Rob Edwards praised his players for not giving up and almost securing a point against their more illustrious rivals.
“They held on. We can get a lot out of them and the performance was good,” Edwards told TNT Sports. “Maybe we change the narrative around us a little bit, and people see it a little bit more.”
The win left Chelsea in 10th place while Luton remain in the relegation zone in 18th place.
