Here’s Jacob Steinberg’s report from St Mary’s.
There is an even bigger game on later. Simon Burnton is your guide.
Full-time!
Chelsea cruised to that win and to a temporary position at the top of the table. They gave up a few chances but took their own with dead calm. Eden Hazard was excellent, as was Ross Barkley. Jorginho ran the show again. Mark Hughes shouldn’t offer up any excuses for that Southampton defeat but...well, let’s see about that.
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90+4 mins: That’s how it’s done, Danny Ings. The final whistle follows soon after.
Goal! Southampton 0-3 Chelsea (Morata, 90+3)
Cheers and jeers from the Chelsea fans as their team passes around the ball. Hazard eventually slides in for Morata to score from close range, chipping over McCarthy in the manner he might with that earlier chance.
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90 mins: Ings, then, stays on the field, and long enough to miss another chance. Jorginho hurried him into another mistake. On repeated replay of that Kovacic foul, he really should have been sent off. He has not had a good day. *That* miss cannot forgotten.
89 mins: Nasty foul on Kovacic from Danny Ings and Ings gets booked for his troubles. That could have been far worse for the sleeve-tattooed striker.
88 mins: Kovacic’s shot wins another Chelsea corner, and Hazard, in the absence of Willian, takes it. Rudiger ended up having a clear sight of goal but missed his chance by getting his legs all tangled.
86 mins: A Southampton free-kick in a dangerous position but Bertrand smashes his attempt into the shins of the Chelsea wall. Not good. Sarri is looking peeved on the sideline, and frantically chewing gum - presumably nicotine gum.
84 mins: Southampton, though ineffective in front of goal, have shown that the Chelsea defence is not impregnable. A team with more confidence might have caused them more problems.
83 mins: Another fine save from Kepa. Ings fires this one and the Basque goalie does his job. Southampton have another corner, and this time a sight of goal. Hoedt hammers the ball wide.
82 mins: Off comes Barkley after his best day yet for Chelsea for Kovacic. Barkley’s move from Everton always looked a strange one but he is getting time and now has a goal and an assist to his name. And perhaps most importantly, he is not Danny Drinkwater. Or Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
80 mins: The pattern repeats itself: as soon as Southampton make a chance, Chelsea force another. Great work from Jorginho and especially Hazard sends Morata clear, but the yips descend. His shot is straight at McCarthy.
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79 mins: But what’s this? Southampton chance: Redmond smashes the ball and Kepa makes an excellent save.
78 mins: Shane Long, after a wait that lived up to his surname, comes on for Gabbiadini. The length of his arrival shows just how much time Chelsea have had on the ball.
76 mins: Hugh Molloy has a sense of humour failure: “Sir Gareth? Give it a rest. England were flattered beyond belief in Russia and fluffed royally the chance to make it to the final. Sir Southgate? Sir Gareth played Kane in centre mid against Croatia so there’s always that position for Barkley.”
Ok, Hugh.
75 mins: N’Golo Kante sent away by Hazard down the right-hand side, but not much comes of it. Chelsea fans are giving it some “olé” action as their team passes the ball around.
74 mins: Shane Long is imminent for Southampton. Charlie Austin still riding pine, then.
73 mins: Mark Hughes looks peeved as he asks for his team to push forward. Some hope, really. Chelsea make another sub: off comes Willian, and on comes Pedro.
71 mins: The slow death of Southampton continues. Chelsea fancy more goals here. Maybe one for Morata, who was highly emotional when scoring against Vidi on Thursday.
70 mins: The legend that is Gary Naylor tweets in: “Is Sarri sponsored by a chain of joke shops? He seems to wear a false nose and glasses combo at every match..”
He also appears to shop in one of Mike Ashley’s outlets.
69 mins: Jorginho now running the game and Southampton are being slowly strangled.
67 mins: Substitution for Chelsea, on comes Morata for Giroud. On the sidelines, Mark Hughes is being peeved at the referee. He has spotted something that may or may not - it almost certainly will - be used in mitigation in post-match.
66 mins: Chance for Southampton. Gabbiadini’s chip is headed down by Ings, Hjøberg fires a shot that Rudiger hurls himself in front of. And Southampton have their first corner of the game...they do nothing with it, mind.
65 mins: The home crowd are getting annoyed now, and so is Hjøberg, who gets booked for a clip of Giroud.
63 mins: Chelsea fans are now in good voice and singing for Gianfranco Zola, legend and assistant manager - just like John Terry is going to be at Aston Villa.
61 mins: Hazard hacked down again and Willian has another chance to get in a free-kick. This time it is cleared. Southampton, though, must be worried that every time they look like scoring they end up conceding. Will Mark Hughes regret not doing a Pulis on it? Not that he would ever admit to doing a Pulis; they don’t get on.
60 mins: Newsflash: The Manchester City bus has arrived and gone through the Shankly Gates.
59 mins: It might be noted that Ross Barkley scored that goal with his knee. They all count.
58 mins: Talking of England, and Ross Barkley, who is back in the England team - everything Sir Gareth touches turns to gold - here’s a piece on England v Brazil from yesterday.
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Goal! Southampton 0-2 Chelsea (Barkley, 57)
Willian takes the free-kick, Giroud swings into a volley and Barkley taps in from close range. That’s his first goal for Chelsea!
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55 mins: Long ball from Willian finds Hazard, who is fouled by an Ings swing. No booking: it was clumsy rather than malicious or calculating.
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54 mins: Barkley, for the commentator’s curse, then fails to read Willian’s run and intentions. That was not a piece of particularly high football intelligence.
53 mins: Lemina is booked for a hack on Ross Barkley, who has had a good game.
52 mins: On the bench, Charlie Austin looks concerned. He would fancy finishing those chances, though doesn’t have Ings’ mobility. Meanwhile, Ings gets a chance, and pings in a shot with minimum backlift. Kepa saves. Southampton have been better. Mark Hughes must have been really peeved in the dressing room.
50 mins: Southampton go close! Slack play allows Danny Ings to make what they used to call a buccaneering run. Hjoberg’s long diag finds Bertrand in space and the shot is too high. Another poor finish. Bertrand pulls his shirt over his head in shame, as well he might.
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49 mins: Mark Hughes looks peeved on the sidelines. Then again, Mark Hughes always looks peeved on the sidelines.
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48 mins: Jorginho is sitting deep and adopting his conductors role. Hazard is meanwhile granted a bit of time on the ball. Chelsea are patient in possession before Willian gets a chance to shoot. McCarthy saves easily enough.
47 mins: Southampton enjoy a bit of possession, which is nice for them, only for a long hoik forward and out to give the ball back to Chelsea.
46 mins: We are back, back, back. Nick Smith emails in: “The mid-table dilemma is perfectly encapsulated by the saints this half; sit back and get picked off in a quiet stadium or give the fans something to shout about by getting at the opposition, then get picked off more easily.”
Well done, Enable and Frankie Dettori in the Arc. We are soon to get back underway at St Mary’s.
Adam Kline-Schoder emails in: “Hey John! Thanks for doing the MBM. In order to try to stop thinking about the 3-0 loss Saints are about to endure (but don’t worry; just like Mark Hughes will say, it will of course be the referee’s fault), I’m about to spend the next 90+ minutes considering the big question: why orange socks for Chelsea’s away kit?”
Good question: shades of their Commodore sponsorship days. It’s a look that reminds of Mark Stein and Paul Furlong.
The big race is upon us. Join Tony Paley.
Half-time
Eden Hazard, who else, got the goal. What a strange half that was. Chelsea dominated but looked vulnerable when Southampton actually committed men forward. And as for Danny Ings, he will have nightmares about that miss.
45 mins: A minute of time added on, and Giroud, tackling back, fouls Bertrand, giving Southampton a free-kick in a dangerous position. Bertrand is booked for complaining about where the kick should be taken from. Redmond takes the kick but it doesn’t beat the first man.
44 mins: Sarri is not happy on the sidelines. His voice is ringing out in what is an otherwise very quiet St Mary’s. His team should be winning by more, in truth.
43 mins: Hoedt has been decent in this game, but it was him who lost the ball for Barkley to supply Hazard. He also might have conceded a penalty, but that’s testament to the quality of Chelsea and the pressure they have put on their opponent.
42 mins: Panicky possession play from Southampton allows Chelsea the chance to force another corner. This one loops off Hoedt, and Alonso tries an acrobatic shot. It misses the target.
40 mins: The home crowd again quiet. Their team has played well for a spell of about five minutes and are lucky to be only one goal down.
38 mins: Kante, in that advanced position, steps forward and wins a corner. Still looks weird, Kante as attacking midfielder. Chelsea win another corner - their tenth. Needless to say, Southampton have not won one. This one is cleared by a McCarthy punch as Chelsea resume their domination.
37 mins: The stats tell us that Chelsea have enjoyed 91 percent of possession in the last five minutes.
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36 mins: Luiz steps up as Rudiger gets caught out. Gabbiadini goes on the run, and ignores Ings to his right. The shot is from a frankly ridiculous distance and is a dreadful waste. Kepa claims with ease.
34 mins: Hoedt is again called into last-ditch action. Hazard received a flick from Giroud and was bearing down on goal. That is what Giroud is in the team for, that type of link-up play.
32 mins: Now Chelsea are trying to settle back into their metronomic rhythm. Southampton have dropped deep once more. This is the pattern of play from the first 20 minutes. Danny Ings, though. What a miss that was.
31 mins: That’s Barkley’s first assist of the season and Hazard’s seventh goal. Cruel on Southampton but opening up like they had was always likely to be dangerous.
Goal! Southampton 0-1 Chelsea (Hazard, 30)
Barkley wins the ball in a dangerous area and feeds Hazard, clear on goal. He doesn’t make a mistake from there.
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28 mins: Southampton opening up may allow more space for Chelsea. The home team have now switched to a flat back four and look far more comfortable in themselves.
27 mins: Penalty claim for Chelsea. Hoedt slid in on Giroud, and takes something of the ball. Hoedt looked very worried. Ref waves it away but it looked as if Giroud was taken out.
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26 mins: Lemina has a shot now. Where was this Southampton? And where are Chelsea?
25 mins: What a chance! Bertrand escapes down the left, his cross is perfect for Ings, who misses from yards out. A stinker of a finish!
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24 mins: Chelsea never quite managed to create as good a chance as that Gabbiadini shot, and now are slightly on the back foot. That’s unexpected after that early dominance but Southampton look a different team.
22 mins: An actual Southampton shot. Gabbiadini works himself into a central position and gets his shot on target. Kepa makes a save. The home fans are getting louder now.
20 mins: Willian drifted the ball in and Giroud misjudged the flight. Chelsea are forced to play the ball back to Kepa and that lifts the crowd. Too passive is the accusation. But here’s a chance: Ings forges on, and dinks in the ball. Lemina tried to get to it, but he just swung a leg.
19 mins: A fifth corner for Chelsea - a spread bettor’s dream. Again, it is not much cop, but Luiz forces a sixth.
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18 mins: Jorginho’s flick causes panic in the Southampton’s defence. A fourth Chelsea corner comes. And is cleared by Hoedt.
17 mins: Slick interchange from Chelsea. Hazard to Kante to Barkley, whose shot fires over the bar. Barkley is back in the England squad, having scored no goals or supplied a single assist. He is, though, playing. Poor Ruben.
15 mins: Long hoof from Luiz is a change of style, but comes to nothing; target-man Giroud was nowhere near it. Chelsea have been excellent, but do look a little blunt with the final ball. However, Southampton must surely tire soon.
14 mins: A free-kick that buys time for Southampton receives an ironic cheer. They waste it, which is less popular with the home contingent.
12 mins: If Chelsea had a striker, they would be really dangerous. Gabbiadini, who is supposed to be a striker, is tackling back as an auxiliary full-back in the style of Samuel Eto’o in Inter Milan’s Mourinho era.
10 mins: Chelsea continue to pile it on. And on. And on. But what’s this? Redmond makes it past the halfway line, only to lose the ball. And Chelsea can attack again.
9 mins: Another corner for Chelsea. They are piling up already. That one is cleared, too, but the pressure continues. The defending by Southampton is already in desperation stakes. They cannot get into the opposing half.
8 mins: Hazard is really on it here. He’s been given the freedom to go where he wants and Southampton have not employed a man marker to stop him.
6 mins: Hazard on the burst, shimmies past a couple but Bednarek does well to stop him. In the next passage of play, Hazard gets more space, Bednarek again gets in the way, and Willian’s shot drifts on the top of the bar via a deflection. The resultant corner is cleared. It’s all Chelsea
5 mins: Alonso forces a corner. Willian whips it in and it drifts to the back stick where McCarthy has to claw it away from danger. Nobody challenges him, though.
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4 mins: As expected, Jorginho is already seeing plenty of the ball. Chelsea are much more patient in their buildup than under Conte.
3 mins: David Luiz is forced to come across and stop Gabbiadini in his tracks. Gabbiadini is playing against Sarri, his old boss at Napoli, and the man who sanctioned his January 2017 sale.
1 min: Chelsea get on the attack, Hazard is down the left-hand side, and gets some space. Thankfully for Southampton, the ball is cleared. On the other flank, Azpilicueta pings in a cross that Alex McCarthy deals with.
And away we go!
Two barren runs at hand here. Saints have not won at home since April. Olivier Giroud has not scored since May, and won a World Cup during that time.
Southampton’s formation is 3-4-3. It will no doubt end up as 5-4-1.
The teams are in the tunnel and Chelsea’s mascot is almost the same height as Chelsea keeper Kepa.
Maurizio Sarri speaks!
On the effect of resting his team v MOL Vid: “I don’t know much. I hope very much.
On Olivier Giroud: “I think that Giroud is very good to play with his mates, and good to play for his mates. At this moment he is very useful for us, he is very important for us.”
He also says he had prepared for Southampton’s change of formation.
Bruv tweets in: “Sarri’s comments on Loftus-Cheek is more evidence that it’s called ‘throwing your players under the bus’ if the team is losing and honest talk when the team is winning. What he is saying is what Jose said... Loftus is lazy on defence.”
Mark Hughes speaks. There is an excuse dropped in - “referees giving last-minute penalties and suchlike” - but he is talking about Southampton’s hopeless home record, which predates him - it was hopeless under Boring Claude Puel and Mauricio Pellegrino, too.
In my time, and I keep pulling this stat out, I’ve managed 19 matches and only six home games, including Chelsea and Manchester City. I would have more of a concern if I thought we were playing poorly. Unfortunately, every mistake at home has been punished. We haven’t won enough games at home. That’s for everyone to see.
Matt Le Tissier is manning the mic on Sky, and suggesting Danny Ings can be the man to push Southampton up the league. Bad stats wafted - Saints have lost 13 points from winning positions under Mark Hughes. As Le Tiss suggests that’s as a result of sitting back on leads: Hughes is something of a conservative coach.
Jorginho’s arrival has meant less playing time for this man, but still he wants to stay. He’s only 31 but a spell in The MLS might soon beckon.
Here’s one of those “wanna feel old?” things. Ruben Loftus-Cheek is three years older than Mason Mount, who is in the England squad in his Chelsea colleague’s stead because he plays actual football on loan at Derby.
Why isn’t RLC being picked by Sarri? This was what the manager said on Thursday after the 22-year-old played well against MOL Vidi. “I have seen he is a great player from the technical point of view, from the physical point of view. He has to improve from a tactical point of view. I think he has played a very good match, from the physical point of view and the technical point of view. I want more, from the tactical point of view, because we conceded three, four counter-attacks to the opponent. We have to do better, especially in these cases, with the mistakes. But I’m sure he will improve.”
Ouch.
Olivier Giroud, who starts today for Chelsea, has been speaking about his lack of goals - he is yet to score this season. “The chances to score will come,” he said. “I will work hard for the team. I am looking forward to this goal.”
Does anyone remember Ruben Loftus-Cheek? Tall lad, looked quite handy during the World Cup. You know the one.
The teams are here!
Southampton: McCarthy, Bednarek, Hoedt, Yoshida, Cedric, Hojbjerg, Lemina, Bertrand, Redmond, Ings, Gabbiadini.
Subs: Vestergaard, Long, Davis, Austin, Romeu, Gunn, Targett.
Chelsea: Arrizabalaga, Azpilicueta, Luiz, Rudiger, Alonso, Kante, Jorginho, Barkley, Willian, Giroud, Hazard.
Subs: Fabregas, Pedro, Caballero, Kovacic, Zappacosta, Cahill, Morata.
Referee: Craig Pawson (South Yorkshire)
Preamble
Pass, pass, pass, pass: with one signing, Maurizio Sarri completely changed Chelsea. Jorginho is the metronome, the rhythm section of a team that has gelled much quicker than could be expected. And with expectations on Chelsea not so high this season, it has been a highly enjoyable season so far for a team on a now lengthy unbeaten run. Just ask Eden Hazard, who is enjoying his football perhaps more than in any time of his six years in England. Talk of him being the world’s best was a bit silly, and made to look sillier this week by Lionel Messi’s antics at Wembley, but he can lay strong claims of being the best player in the Premier League.
Chelsea must fancy breezing past Saints, who have won one game this season, and that was against a Zaha-less Crystal Palace. Mark Hughes has had to do a lot of excuse-making, but there is nobody in the game is better at that.
