Chelsea moved four points clear of Arsenal in the race for a Champions League spot after they edged 10-man Leeds 3-0 in a Premier League clash at Elland Road on Wednesday night.
The Blues led Arsenal by a point going into the match and knew well only a win could keep their dreams alive.
Thomas Tuchel’s charges got off to a perfect start as Mason Mount gave them the lead inside three minutes, beautifully curling his effort past the keeper into the top corner.
What a finish, Mason Mount. 🔥pic.twitter.com/biql7OiJEg
— LDN (@LDNFootbalI) May 11, 2022
Just like it was in their last match against Arsenal, Leeds were reduced to 10 men in the 24th minute when Daniel James was given a straight red card for a wild tackle on Mateo Kovacic.
The Croatian was substituted minutes later and was replaced by Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
Chelsea thought they had scored a second just after the half-hour mark when Romelu Lukaku beautifully found the back of the net with a well-worked finish, but his effort was ruled out for offside.
Two minutes later, Lukaku came to within inches of scoring, but his glancing header could not find the target as the hosts survived again.
Illan Meslier was forced to put his skills to use just before the break, denying Pulisic from close range, even though the goal, were it to be scored, could not have stood as the flag went up moments later.
10 minutes into the second half, the Blues doubled their lead with a beautiful team goal, which started from midfield before Pulisic found the bottom right corner with a left finish.
Lukaku, Mount, and Pulisic all came close to scoring a third as the match wore on, but the goal never arrived, until the 85th minute.
Lukaku made a great solo run and pulled the trigger from inside the box, beating Meslier with a strike under the crossbar.
The win moves the Blues closer to punching their Champions League ticket with only two matches remaining.
A win for Arsenal against Spurs on Thursday night will confirm the Blues participation for next season’s tournament before they play their next match, against Leicester.
