Cole Palmer was the star of the show as Chelsea survived a late fightback from Luton Town to edge to a 3-2 victory at Kenilworth Road.
The midfielder scored twice while also supplying the assist for Noni Madueke’s second goal in as many games as Chelsea ended a four-match losing streak away from home. But it was a close-run thing as Luton fought back with two goals in the final 10 minutes through Ross Barkley and Elijah Adebayo and almost snatched an equaliser.
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How the match unfolded
Mauricio Pochettino made one change, starting Madueke, the hero of their late win over Crystal Palace last time out. Luton also made one change, with Issa Kabore coming in for Ryan Giles.
Chelsea rewarded a bright start by opening the scoring for only the seventh time this season through Palmer in the 12th minute.
The midfielder pounced on a loose pass out from his area by former Manchester City team-mate Kabore to arrow a shot past Thomas Kaminski into the far corner for his seventh league goal of the season and Chelsea’s quickest strike of the season so far.
Madueke doubled Chelsea’s lead eight minutes before half-time with an emphatic finish at the near post. Chelsea swept through the Luton midfield, with Palmer finding Madueke, who advanced into the box and waited before smashing the ball past Kaminski with his right foot.
The second half followed the pattern of the first after Chelsea’s opener, Luton dominating with the ball but offering little threat.
Chelsea made it 3-0 in the 70th minute as Palmer scored his second of the match with great composure. The 21-year-old took the ball around Kaminski and poked it into the net before the Luton defenders could close him down.
Adebayo thought he gave Luton a lifeline four minutes later as he converted Alfie Doughty’s cross, but the goal was overturned after a VAR review because Doughty had been offside. That did not stop Luton as ex-Chelsea player Barkley flicked in in Doughty’s corner with 10 minutes to go.
It was now all Luton as Djordje Petrovic parried Carlton Morris’s header on to the bar from close range.
But less than a minute later, in the 87th minute, it was 3-2. Petrovic parried Doughty’s header, but only into the path of Adebayo to head in.
Chelsea were reeling and Luton continued to come close to scoring, but saw their crosses flash across goal but outside the reach of their attackers.
Chelsea held on for their third win in four matches, staying 10th but moving to 28 points, one point behind Newcastle United. Luton remain 18th on 15 points.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 |
West Ham
WHU
|
38 | -14 | 52 |
| 10 |
Crystal Palace
CRY
|
38 | -1 | 49 |
| 11 |
Brighton
BHA
|
38 | -7 | 48 |
| 12 |
Bournemouth
BOU
|
38 | -13 | 48 |
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 |
Everton
EVE
|
38 | -11 | 40 |
| 16 |
Brentford
BRE
|
38 | -9 | 39 |
| 17 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
38 | -18 | 32 |
| 18 |
Luton
LUT
|
38 | -33 | 26 |
| 19 |
Burnley
BUR
|
38 | -37 | 24 |
| 20 |
Sheffield Utd
SHU
|
38 | -69 | 16 |
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Key facts
Palmer has both scored and assisted in four different Premier League games this season, more than any other player. Only two players have scored and assisted in more Premier League games in a single season for Chelsea than Palmer: Mason Mount (six in 2021/22) and Jimmy Floyd-Hasselbaink (five in 2000/01).
Pochettino remains unbeaten in Premier League away games against promoted sides (P21 W19 D2), winning each of his last five.
Luton’s Ross Barkley scored his first Premier League goal against Chelsea, in his 10th appearance against them. He is the 28th player to score against Chelsea in the competition having played for them, three more than any other side.
Luton have lost three of last four home games in the Premier League (W1), conceding three or more at Kenilworth Road for just the second time in the competition (also lost 4-3 to Arsenal).