Fulham vs Chelsea. Premier League.
Craven CottageAttendance24,445.
Match report and highlights as two goals in two first-half minutes from Mykhailo Mudryk and Armando Broja give Chelsea a 2-0 win over Fulham; Blues' first Premier League victory since August takes them up to 11th in the table
Tuesday 3 October 2023 10:10, UK
Mykhailo Mudryk's first goal for Chelsea helped Mauricio Pochettino's side claim their first Premier League win since August as they beat West London rivals Fulham 2-0 at Craven Cottage.
Mudryk took his goal brilliantly in the 18th minute, controlling Levi Colwill's cross on his chest and finding the back of the net for the first time since his £88.5m arrival from Shakhtar Donetsk in January.
Chelsea had not scored in the Premier League since beating Luton on August 25 but their second arrived almost instantly, Armando Broja bundling the ball into the net from Tim Ream's attempted tackle only 20 seconds after the restart on his first start in 11 months.
Chelsea defended resolutely as Fulham tried to muster a response in the second half, but their evening was not without negatives as scorers Mudryk and Broja were both withdrawn with apparent injury problems before Moises Caicedo hobbled off in stoppage time.
Pochettino played down those injury scares afterwards, however, instead delighting at a win which takes Chelsea up to 11th and could serve as a turning point following their poor start to the campaign. Fulham, meanwhile, remain 13th.
Chelsea came into the game without 11 players due to injury or suspension and also had to drop Raheem Sterling to the bench following a virus, but they started brightly and soon had their reward.
Mudryk had endured a difficult start to the game, dribbling a ball out of play and firing a wild shot over, but he took his goal in superb style, taking Colwill's left-wing cross on his chest and sending a low finish through Bernd Leno's legs.
Fulham's defending was poor for the opener but it was even worse for Chelsea's second, with Cole Palmer able to cut out Ream's slack pass and feed Broja, with Ream's attempted recovery tackle then bouncing off the Chelsea striker and into the net.
Fulham took four points off their West London rivals last season but never really looked like getting anything from the game after that double setback, with Chelsea slicing through them repeatedly in a one-sided first half, with Conor Gallagher the standout performer.
The hosts showed some improvement after the break, creating half-chances for substitutes Alex Iwobi and Carlos Vinicius, but they only managed to carve out one clear opportunity and, when they did, Robert Sanchez was equal to it.
It came from Sasa Lukic, another substitute, when he sent a close-range attempt too close to the Chelsea goalkeeper, who pulled off a fine reflex save to preserve his side's clean sheet.
Earlier in the half, Chelsea had spurned an opportunity to add a third, with substitute Ian Maatsen striking the post from Broja's cut-back and Leno charging down Enzo Fernandez's cut-back.
A third goal would have added some gloss to the result, but it was a satisfying night for the Blues nonetheless - even with more potential injuries to add to a long list.
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino told Sky Sports: "It's important for us to build our confidence and trust in ourselves. The performance was very good, I'm so happy for the players and in the end we got what we deserved."
On Mudryk's first goal for the club, he said:: "It's very important for offence players to score a goal. He was doing well. He was unlucky at half-time, he felt something in his quad but hopefully it's not a big issue and he will be ready for the weekend. I'm so happy for both (the goalscorers)"
Asked again about Mudryk's progress in his press conference, he said: "It's about maturity, adaptation. We need to understand that all young people need time to settle.
"It was a massive change for him when he arrived here. When you arrive in a team, it's not easy to settle because, being honest, too many young players arrived in a team that is not solid.
"They are not the cherry on the cake. They need to add something to the team to build something important, which is difficult, but it's about having patience, about trusting these guys.
"It's a massive job, it's step by step, very short steps. Sometimes people don't have patience but for us it's about having patience. Even when we weren't winning, we kept calm and positive."
On Caicedo's apparent injury, he said: "Caicedo is a contusion (a bruise). We hope it's nothing. He was tired but it's a contusion."
Fulham boss Marco Silva: "Disappointing result for us. At certain moments, performance-wise as well. They started intense from the first moment, winning some individual challenges that gave the boost they needed.
"Our first half was not aggressive enough on and off the ball. We were sloppy in some moments. We did not bring the dynamic that we should. Even our first pressure didn't work very well.
"We were too passive the way we reacted to the cross from Colwill (for the first goal) and then after that we were punished by another mistake from ourselves, 30 seconds later.
"That created a different scenario for us and a perfect one for Chelsea. They were a lot more confident form that moment. Our second half was better but we didn't score our chances."
Fulham's next match is a Premier League clash against Sheffield United at Craven Cottage on Saturday October 7; kick-off 3pm.
Meanwhile, Chelsea face Burnley, also on Saturday October 7; kick-off 3pm.
