Enzo Maresca withdrew Cole Palmer from the starting lineup after Palmer left the warm-up feeling something, and the decision was taken as a precaution to protect his fitness. Estevao Willian replaced Palmer. West Ham opened the scoring through Lucas Paqueta after six minutes, but Chelsea responded with Joao Pedro's first Premier League goal, then strikes from Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez before half-time. Trevoh Chalobah and Moises Caicedo added further goals to complete a 5-1 victory. Chelsea finished with an xG of 2.93 versus West Ham's 0.94 and moved to the top of the early standings.
And the Blues initially struggled in his absence after going behind to Lucas Paqueta's stunning sixth-minute opener, but the Club World Cup champions responded in style. Joao Pedro's first Premier League goal for Chelsea hauled them level before further strikes from Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez had Maresca's men cruising at the break. Trevoh Chalobah and Moises Caicedo concluded the rout, leading the Blues to the summit of the early standings, having drawn their opening game with Crystal Palace.
Chelsea's triumph was just the 10th time in Premier League history that a side scored five or more goals in their first away game of the season, with the Blues also the last to do so, winning 6-2 away to Wolves in 2024-25. And Maresca's side were worthy of their win, ending the game with an expected goals (xG) total of 2.93 from their 12 shots to West Ham's 0.94 from their 12 attempts as they piled more pressure on former boss Graham Potter.
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