New Chelsea striker, Gonzalo Higuain scored his first two Premier League goals on Saturday, sharing the spoils with Eden Hazard in a 5-0 thrashing of bottom side Huddersfield Town to ease the pressure on coach Maurizio Sarri.
Higuain, who arrived in London last month on loan from Juventus, opened the scoring in emphatic style when he pounced on an angled pass from N’Golo Kante and slammed home a first-time shot in the 16th minute.
After two goals from Hazard on either side of half time, one of them a penalty, Higuain celebrated his first league game at home for Chelsea by thumping in the Londoners’ fourth goal from outside the box, helped by a deflection.
The goal capped a fine afternoon for the 31-year-old Argentine who linked up well with Hazard and offered Chelsea fans hope that a lean period, when the team struggled to score, might be ending.
David Luiz made it 5-0 in the 86th minute, his header from a corner diverted past Huddersfield goalkeeper Jonas Loessl by Elias Kachunga’s outstretched foot.
Chelsea had lost their previous two league games, including a 4-0 drubbing by mid-table Bournemouth on Wednesday, sparking talk that Sarri might become the latest in a string of managers to be fired after just a few months.
Chelsea will face a stiffer test next weekend when they visit champions Manchester City but Sarri looked relieved after Saturday’s win.
He predicted the Higuain-Hazard partnership would bring out the best in both players.
“Apart from the goals (Higuain scored), he is really very suitable to play very close to Eden,” Sarri said. “I think that on the pitch they are really very suitable to play one close to the other.”
Higuain’s arrival at Stamford Bridge reunited him with Sarri who was manager of Napoli when the Argentine was at the club. Higuain scored 38 times in their final season together in Italy in 2015-16.
Just as pleasing for Chelsea fans was Hazard’s return to his best form in his preferred position on the wing, having looked out of place as the spearhead of Chelsea’s attack in a string of games when Sarri chose not to start with centre forwards Alvaro Morata – now on loan at Atletico Madrid – and Olivier Giroud.
Hazard’s two goals against Huddersfield were his first in the league in more than a month.
Saturday’s win took Chelsea into fourth place – the last Champions League qualifying spot – above Arsenal, who play at Manchester City on Sunday. Huddersfield remain rooted to the basement, six points behind second-bottom Fulham.
(Reuters)
