Celebration as Chelsea win first game in 2023

The past weeks have been tortuous for Chelsea losing game after game but on Sunday at their Stamford Bridge home ground they finally halted their free fall.

Kai Havertz got the all-important goal as Chelsea squeezed at a 1-0 win over London, neighbours Crystal Palace.

Sunday’s win is the first in nine games for the Blues with last victory coming several weeks back

The derby victory helped relieve some of the mounting pressure on under-fire manager Graham Potter.

Chelsea paid emotional tribute to Gianluca Vialli before and during their first game at Stamford Bridge since the sad passing of their legendary former player and manager aged just 58 following a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Also, their new signing Mykhaylo Mudryk watched on from a directors’ box and was presented to fans at half-time after completing his stunning £89million transfer from Shakhtar Donetsk.

In a lively London derby encounter in SW6, Spanish goalkeepers Kepa Arrizabalaga and Vicente Guaita were both kept busy with a string of impressive saves that kept the deadlock intact until four minutes past the hour, when Havertz rose to meet Hakim Ziyech’s pinpoint cross following an effective short corner to punish some sleepy Palace defending and plant what proved to be a winning header into the back of the net.

Kai Havertz… generational talent. pic.twitter.com/FxEm2eeas3

— Alabi (@the_Lawrenz) January 13, 2023

That was just about what Chelsea deserved from an improved display, albeit one that was still not convincing by any means and in which they rode their luck at times.

But victory was essential at all costs for Potter, who was battling to save his job after a dire run of three straight defeats and just one win in nine - Chelsea’s worst top-flight run since 1996 that saw them drop down to 10th and 10 points adrift of the top four, in addition to meek exits from both domestic cup competitions at the hands of Manchester City.