Premier League: Chelsea beat Bournemouth 2-0 as Graham Potter's Blues offence picks up
Chelsea bounced back from their pre-World Cup debacle with a 2-0 win over Bournemouth, in which England duo Raheem Sterling and Mason Mount starred.
Mason Mount inspired Chelsea against BournemouthGraham Potter desperately needed a win after his side failed to finish in the top six ahead of the break for the World Cup following three straight defeats.
But there were encouraging signs that Potter had made good use of the six-week break as Chelsea beat their fearful opponents with flying colours.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Glad to be back at Stamford Bridge, glad to be back at home!! 💙 👏🏽👊🏽<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ThiagoSilva?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ThiagoSilva</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TS6?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TS6</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OhhhThiagoSilva?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OhhhThiagoSilva</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Chelsea?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Chelsea</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ChelseaFC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ChelseaFC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CFC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CFC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreBlue?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreBlue</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BlueIsTheColour?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BlueIsTheColour</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ChelseaForever?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ChelseaForever</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CheBou?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CheBou</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StamfordBridge?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#StamfordBridge</a> <a href="https://t.co/oSXmd14O8j">pic.twitter.com/oSXmd14O8j</a></p>— Thiago Silva (@tsilva3) <a href="https://twitter.com/tsilva3/status/1607891361994346496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Bournemouth had won three of their last five visits to Stamford Bridge, but in Gary O'Neil's first game as head coach, they did not look like they were repeating that feat.
The only fly in the ointment for the Blues was England defender Reece James, who limped off the field injured again shortly after the half-time break following the knee injury that had ruled him out of the World Cup.
The full-back had quickly picked himself up and made a daring run and cross to Marc Cucurella, who laid the ball off for Kai Havertz, but he headed it just over the bar.
Chelsea had a chance for a penalty shortly after when Adam Smith plucked Christian Pulisic by the jersey, but neither referee Simon Hooper nor the VAR showed any interest.
Nevertheless, Chelsea had the game under control and took the lead after just 16 minutes when Mount served his England colleague Sterling on the right.
Sterling fizzed a low ball across goal that Havertz, another member of the Chelsea contingent from Qatar, slid under the diving Bournemouth keeper Mark Travers.
Seven minutes later, Chelsea had their second goal on the line when Havertz laid the ball off for Mount, who was playing his 150th game for Chelsea, and beat Travers from 20 yards.
There was confusion before the half-time break when a penalty appeal fell on deaf ears on both sides before Pulisic put the ball in the net, the goal seemingly disallowed after a foul by Havertz on Smith.
Travers then made good saves from James and Sterling to keep the deficit at two goals.
James' second-half effort lasted just seven minutes before he went down, and the unfortunate 23-year-old looked close to tears as he stomped off the pitch.
Havertz should have scored the second when he slipped past Lloyd Kelly in the box, but his shot went wide. Travers parried another shot from Mount, and Kalidou Koulibaly headed a Cesar Azpilicueta cross just wide of the goal.
Bournemouth struggled but could not trouble Kepa Arrizabalaga until the 79th minute when the Chelsea keeper parried a Ryan Christie shot at the near post.