Read Dominic Fifield’s match report from Stamford Bridge here:
Full-time: Chelsea 4-3 Watford
A surprisingly entertaining match comes to an end. Chelsea have won again. They made work of it, but there’s no stopping them. One more league game left and then it’s the FA Cup final, when you can be sure they’ll be properly on their game. Thanks for reading and emailing. Bye.
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90 min+3: This is boiling over now. Watford are furious with Pedro, who was caught by Holebas a few moments ago and involved in an argument with several visiting players now. John Terry calms things down before booking Okaka.
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Red card for Prodl (Watford)
90 min+2: The Watford centre-back catches Pedro late and receives a second booking. He can have no complaints, though Rachel Davison will probably spy a conspiracy.
90 min+1: There will be five added minutes. Troy Deeney’s on for Watford.
90 min: Pedro tries to chip Gomes, spotting the Watford goalkeeper off his line, but the Spaniard overcooks his effort.
GOAL! Chelsea 4-3 Watford (Fabregas, 88 min)
N’Golo Kante uses his strength to win possession of Capoue in the middle of Watford’s half. He moves it to Willian, who weighs up a shot before deciding to twist and turn a bit more. Eventually he tees up Fabregas, whose bouncing shot from 18 yards somehow squirms past Gomes and bobbles inside the right post!
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87 min: Over on the right, Willian plays a slide-rule pass through to Fabregas. He can’t slip it past Gomes from a tight angle. The ball loops up off the Watford goalkeeper and it’s hacked clear.
85 min: “Not so ‘tedious’ tonight, are they Jacob?” says Rachel Davison. “What’s your beef with Watford anyhow?”
I’m simply following the Guardian’s virulent anti-Watford bias, Rachel.
84 min: Pedro replaces Batshuayi before the free-kick. Fabregas overhits his cross, but Gomes is forced to tip over, having misplaced his bearings. From the corner, Terry heads over.
83 min: Prodl cleans Batshuayi out. Batshuayi’s furious. He barges the Watford centre-back in the chest. Prodl’s booked.
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81 min: Janmaat’s drive fizzes just over. Zouma appears to have picked up an injury.
80 min: Behrami shoots wide from 25 yards. Chelsea are in crisis. Where did it all go wrong? Conte out.
79 min: Cesc Fabregas replaces Nathaniel Chalobah.
78 min: Zouma heads behind for a Watford corner. It’s cleared.
77 min: Will Conte ask Diego Costa to put down his plate of cheese?
75 min: Ola Aina replaces Kenedy.
GOAL! Chelsea 3-3 Watford (Okaka, 74 min)
Okaka equalises for Watford with pretty much his first touch! Chelsea fail to deal with Cleverley’s cross from the right and the ball drops to Okaka, who hammers it low past Begovic! Watford were 3-1 down. What a response from the visitors!
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71 min: Azpilicueta belts a volley over from 25 yards. He’s on one tonight. Stefano Okaka replaces Niang.
70 min: Holebas tries to dribble out of trouble at the back, forgetting that he’s Holebas. Willian picks his pocket and the ball runs to Azpilicueta. Fancying a second, he shoots low and hard towards the bottom corner, but Gomes tips wide.
69 min: “John Terry could have hidden many things up his sleeve,” says Martin McKeefry. “He once hid a full kit including shin pads under a suit.”
Are you saying he’s wearing a full kit under his full kit right now? Meta.
68 min: Batshuayi, hungry for more goals, ignores Willian to his right and shoots from 20 yards. Prodl blocks.
65 min: After a spell of Chelsea keep-ball, enjoyed heartily by the crowd, the hosts try to score a goal. The ball’s worked into Batshuayi, back to goal, six yards out. He spins and shoots, but Gomes saves.
63 min: Diego Costa, though.
Not the Moose at the buffet this time. Diego Costa walked into the press room for some half time cheese. #cfc https://t.co/huBtD7MTWY
— Kristof Terreur 📰 (@HLNinEngeland) May 15, 2017
62 min: “You’re only here for the Chelsea,” chant the Chelsea fans, hopefully not to each other.
58 min: Chalobah’s booked for a late challenge on Cleverley.
56 min: John Terry’s going through all the classics here. An on-the-ground header, just for old time’s sake? Why not? I wonder if he’s got any of the other old favourites hidden up his sleeve.
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54 min: Azpilicueta has an eye problem. Lee Mason wants him to go off for treatment. Azpilicueta’s not happy. He reckons he’s been caught by a deliberate Janmaat elbow.
GOAL! Chelsea 3-2 Watford (Janmaat, 51 min)
Daryl Janmaat’s body is suddenly possessed by Eden Hazard. The Dutchman latches on to a loose ball on the left, surges into the area, skitters past a weak challenge from Ake and strokes a low finish past Begovic! What a goal! Watford are back in it.
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GOAL! Chelsea 3-1 Watford (Batshuayi, 49 min)
Chelsea take the corner short, working it swiftly to Kenedy, 25 yards out. Then, a moment of fortune. His deflected shot loops through to Ake, who’s alert enough to read the flight of the ball and control. The flag stays down, correctly, and Ake has only Gomes to beat. Unselfishly, he sets up Batshuayi for a tap-in.
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48 min: Willian hurtles down the inside left channel, Hazard splitting the Watford defence, and tries to find the far corner. Gomes turns it behind.
46 min: Chelsea get the second half underway.
Half-time: Chelsea 2-1 Watford
We have half-time.
45 min+3: This has become scrappy. We need half-time.
45 min: Three minutes of the added stuff.
42 min: Chelsea counter at breakneck speed down the right, Hazard haring away, Watford all over the place. Hazard’s cutback isn’t great, but it reaches Kenedy, whose shot’s deflected wide.
41 min: Terry heads the corner away. It’s volleyed back in awkwardly by Amrabat and Capoue heads over.
40 min: Niang, mouth patched up, goes on a saunter down the right and ends up winning a corner.
38 min: Niang’s bleeding from the mouth after being caught by Kante. He’ll need some treatment.
GOAL! Chelsea 2-1 Watford (Azpilicueta, 36 min)
This is an excellent goal. Hazard’s corner from the left is only headed away as far as Azpilcueta, lurking unmarked on the edge of the area. He takes one touch and, before anyone can close him down, lashes a vicious low shot through the bodies and into the bottom right corner!
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35 min: Hazard slips a pass inside Amrabat for Kenedy, who reaches the byline and tries to cross. Gomes pushes it behind at his near post. And...
32 min: Willian pings from right to left for Hazard. He takes it down beautifully, skips inside Mariappa and wrongfoots Gomes with a shot towards the near post. A slight touch off Mariappa takes it inches wide, though, and a goal-kick’s given just to frustrate Hazard even more.
30 min: Ake’s booked for a foul on Behrami.
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29 min: Hazard Fabregases a raking pass over the top of the Watford defence from deep, looking for Hazard. The forward brings the ball down but it just runs away from him, allowing Gomes to whip it off his toes. The Watford keeper does well to time it perfectly, else it would have been a penalty and potentially a red card.
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27 min: Willian sees his shot from 18 yards blocked by Prodl. “This type of game should be like the NBA all-star game and have absolutely no defense and all sorts of scoring,” says Dave Hill. “Looks like JT got my memo.”
GOAL! Chelsea 1-1 Watford (Capoue, 24 min)
Having given Chelsea the lead, John Terry gifts Watford an instant equaliser! This came from absolutely nothing. A long punt into the area, looking for Capoue, was covered by Ake. His header looped up into the air and Terry should have dealt with it comfortably on the edge of the area. Instead he got his wires crossed with Chalobah, tried to head the ball back to Begovic, left it too short and allowed Capoue to nip in and nod it over the Chelsea goalkeeper! Oh, JT!
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GOAL! Chelsea 1-0 Watford (Terry, 22 min)
Captain, leader, legend, goalscorer. But of course. It comes from a Willian corner, won when Batshuayi’s spin and shot was deflected behind on the right. Willian lofted it in and Zouma and Terry both rose above the Watford defenders, who were all over the place. Zouma’s header hit Terry and dropped for the Chelsea captain to react fastest and hook the loose ball past Gomes and in off the post!
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20 min: Willian slides a pass down the left for Hazard, who wins a corner for Chelsea.
19 min: This game needs Claude Maka Makelele to take a penalty.
18 min: I’m pretty sure Hazard just asked Lee Mason if he’s carrying a bottle opener.
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16 min: Who should Chelsea sign?
14 min: “I’m sure you remember Chelsea’s first game of the season,” says JR in Illinois. “That was the game against West Ham where Costa, already on a yellow, scythed down Adrian. What should have been, at a minimum, a second yellow if not a straight red somehow was completely ignored by Anthony Taylor. Of course Costa went on to score the winner. Perhaps Chelsea don’t win the title if Costa doesn’t get away with that. (Costa got away with quite a lot in the first few games). Ah, nuts. That’s just one of many things in the last six to nine months I wish had turned out differently.”
11 min: Amrabat messily fouls Kenedy on the left. Yellow card. Willian’s free-kick is overhit. “Kenedy absolutely crushes it with Watford for 1 game, (sarcasm) and now gets to receive a tasty guard of honour from the team that ended his loan,” says Tim Penney. “What a season for the former fluminense player.” It was almost as amusing as the time Chelsea were forced to give a guard of honour to Dong Fangzhou, Chris Eagles and Kieran Richardson.
9 min: It did seem a strange decision by Conte to leave Hazard in the side, with the FA Cup final still to come; the risks of doing so are made clear when Behrami catches the Belgian on the shin. Hazard screams and goes down. To Conte’s relief, he’s suffered no lasting damage.
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6 min: “No room for Loftus-Cheek?” says Michel Bechirian. “Is he injured or... ?” Both.
4 min: Holebas picks up his trademark booking for catching Batshuayi in the face. The Belgian needs a spot of treatment.
3 min: Willian storms down the right in electrifying fashion, past the wheezing Holebas, and tries to cut the ball back for Batshuayi. The ball’s stolen off his toes and Hazard sees his volley blocked.
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2 min: Chelsea’s fans applaud Conte. He applauds back. I’ve got something in my eye.
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And we’re off! Watford, in their white away strip, get the game underway! They’re kicking from left to right in the first half. The Chelsea fans are singing about being champions and serenading Antonio Conte.
Here come the teams. Watford’s players sprint out the tunnel first so they can form a guard of honour for Chelsea. It’s the least Nathaniel Chalobah, Kenedy and Nathan Ake deserve. Out they come: the champions. Chelsea’s fans are going to enjoy themselves tonight.
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“A meaningless game really, but it does give some of Chelsea’s fringe players some gametime,” says Luke Forrester, who’s building up to something here. “A particular lesser-seen squad member will be relieved of mopping up duties in midfield, protected as he is by Kante behind him. This will give him free-rein to find gaps in the middle of the park -- Kenedy space centre, if you will.”
Chelsea make nine changes to the team that won the title on Friday night. Most notably, there are starts for Nathaniel Chalobah in midfield and captain, leader, legend John Terry in defence.
Watford make three changes to their side. Amrabat, Cleverley and Niang replace Kabasele, Okaka and Deeney.
Team news
Chelsea: Begovic; Zouma, Terry, Ake; Azpilicueta, Kante, Chalobah, Kenedy; Willian, Batshuayi, Hazard. Subs: Eduardo, Aina, Alonso, Cahill, Fabregas, Pedro, Diego Costa.
Watford: Gomes; Mariappa, Prodl, Holebas; Amrabat, Cleverley, Behrami, Doucoure, Janmaat; Capoue; Niang. Subs: Pantilimon, Mason, Eleftheriou, Zuniga, Pereira, Okaka, Deeney.
Referee: Lee Mason.
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Preamble
You have to feel sorry for the television companies. There they were, anticipating a dramatic finale to the Premier League season when they made their live picks for this week and cannily scheduled your favourites across the following four nights, and here we are. No more title race, no more relegation battle, no more interest in the league campaign from Manchester United. The best laid plans gone to waste. Poor television companies. These guys just can’t catch a break.
The big bonanza week of football begins at Stamford Bridge this evening, where Chelsea were supposed to be feeling the nerves as they sought another three points in their quest for the title. Yeah, about that. Turns out nerves aren’t really the kind of thing that hit Antonio Conte sides. The title’s already in the bag. In truth, that had basically been the case since December and confirmation of the inevitable arrived when Michy Batshuayi picked a good moment to make his first meaningful impact of the season on Friday night, scoring the goal that sparked those wild celebrations - and that infamous photo with Geoff Shreeves, Conte and Tony Pulis, all the lads basiclly - at the Hawthorns.
Which leaves us with this. A match between Chelsea, who we must presume have spent the entire weekend enjoying partying, and Watford, who apparently lost interest in the season at some point in October and have since been going through the motions in return for cash, occasionally picking up the odd positive result now and then in order to keep clear of danger. Judging by the state of a febrile Diego Costa in the aftermath of the win over West Brom, the best we can hope for is that Chelsea are so hilariously hungover that this turns into the kind of farce usually seen on Hackney Marshes on a Sunday morning. We’ve been here before, after all. Three days after winning the FA Cup final in 2012, Chelsea turned up at Anfield for a nothing league fixture, whereupon a somewhat tired and emotional John Terry proceeded to make Andy Carroll look like Pele during a 4-1 defeat KENNY DALGLISH’S LIVERPOOL. Poor television companies!
Kick-off: 8pm BST.
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