Watford suffered a heartbreak as Chelsea came from behind to snatch the game away from them in the 87th minute. Diego Costa is turning into the Blues’ resident saviour as he has popped up in both the matches of the season so far to send Antonio Conte into a wild, unbridled frenzy. Similar to last week, Watford took a shock lead through Etienne Capoue as he met Guedioura’s cross and unleashed an unstoppable shot into Courtois’s goal. Chelsea seemed to wake up from their slumber but were lacking in bite going forward. They had to wait until the 80th minute as Batshuayi capitalised on an Gomes error to restore parity and with momentum on their side, Chelsea went all out for the win and got it after Fabregas’s exquisite through ball which set-up Costa to be the hero in successive weeks.
PLAYER RATINGS
COURTOIS- 5.5/10
The Belgian still hasn’t shown the form of the title winning season and looked nervy in goal despite scant workload. Could do nothing about the goal, though.
IVANOVIC- 4/10
The Serbian shows no visible sign of improvement and will have got the Chelsea board thinking of backups in the full-back area. Offered little going forward and was at sea trying to deal with the industrious Holebas.
CAHILL- 5.5/10
Formed a poor partnership on the right side of the defence along with Ivanovic. Was lacking in positional awareness quite a number of times but was solid in the air and dealt with the threat of Deeney well.
TERRY- 6/10
Used his experience to good effect and marshalled his backline well. He might not play all the matches as the season goes on but his importance was clear today.
AZPILICUETA- 6.5/10
The Spaniard has been a consistent performer for Chelsea. Doesn’t give the impression of being a flashy full-back but is quietly efficient going forward and it was in the left-flank that Chelsea found the going easier due to his understanding with Hazard.
MATIC- 5.5/10
His place now looks to be under threat after the match-winning cameo from Fabregas. Played a few passes in the midfield but was lacking in the advanced areas.
KANTE- 6/10
The Frenchman was full of energy and protected the back four well but had difficulty in imposing himself in midfield as he was closed down regularly by the fast and physical Watford midfield.
PEDRO- 5.5/10
Tried to grasp this rare opportunity but failed to impress. Showed energy and intent in the initial stage but faded quickly and was replaced by the more physical Victor Moses.
OSCAR- 6.5/10
Was crowded out in the No.10 role where he was mainly stationed but drifted out to the right later on where he exploited the little pockets of space created due to the fatigued Watford defence.
HAZARD- 7.5/10
Getting back to his best form gradually, the Belgian looked confident and took on players. In the second half especially he shifted centrally and trouble the Hornet’s with his incisive passes and eventually his shot from distance opened up an opportunity for his fellow compatriot Batshuayi to tap in from 6 yards.
COSTA- 7.5/10
Looking like a key player for them as he won the game for his team in successive weeks. But he was again lucky not to be sent off after a blatant dive went unpunished by the referee. His discipline might well cost Chelsea a match someway down the line, but as of now, he is their hero.
SUBSTITUTES
MOSES- 7/10
Brought pace and power on the flanks and looked to prove a point. Part of substitutes who won the match.
FABREGAS- 7.5/10
Another player seemingly fighting for a place in the team, he was arguably the game changer. Played an important part in the first goal before threading an exquisite pass for Costa to finish. Might have booked a place for the next match.
BATSHUAYI-7/10
Started the comeback. Was alert to follow the ball and calmly slot it into the net after a spill by the goalkeeper. Would have got an awful lot of confidence after his maiden goal.
