Cole Palmer starred as Chelsea cruised to a convincing victory over Aston Villa, extending the visitors’ winless streak to eight games.
Nicolas Jackson opened the scoring in the seventh minute, slotting a first-time shot past Emi Martinez after Marc Cucurella capitalized on a mistake by Jadon Philogene and delivered a precise cross.
Enzo Fernandez doubled Chelsea’s lead in the 36th minute, expertly volleying home with his right foot following a deft touch with his left, set up by a well-placed pass from Palmer after Moises Caicedo won possession in midfield.
Palmer capped off his impressive performance with a stunning left-footed strike from the edge of the box in the 83rd minute, securing the win. Both Palmer and Jackson now boast eight goals each for Chelsea this season.
Chelsea dominated the match, controlling over 64% possession and creating several chances. Jadon Sancho came close, and Palmer missed an opportunity from eight yards following a mix-up between Martinez and Pau Torres.
For Villa, Ollie Watkins had a frustrating day, missing two clear chances—one in the 15th minute and another just before halftime after a Fernandez error.
The visitors’ woes deepened when Martinez was forced off at halftime due to injury.
Despite some second-half chances for John McGinn and substitute Ross Barkley, Villa couldn’t mount a comeback. Chelsea’s only concern was an injury to Wesley Fofana.
With this win, Chelsea climbed to joint-second in the Premier League table with 25 points, while Villa slipped to 12th with 19 points.
This marks the longest winless run of Unai Emery’s Villa tenure, with their last victory coming in the 2-0 Champions League triumph over Bologna in October.
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