Burnley 0 – 2 Chelsea
(Neto 37′, Fernandez 88′)
By Our Sports Correspondent
LANCASHIRE – The notoriously fiery atmosphere of Turf Moor, one of English football’s oldest and most intimidating cauldrons, was reduced to a simmering silence on Saturday as a clinical Chelsea side claimed a composed 2-0 victory over Burnley.
Burnley’s faithful, packed into the historic Lancashire ground which has been home to the Clarets since 1883, had hoped to roar their team on to a much-needed result. Instead, they watched in frustration as Enzo Maresca’s Blues expertly negotiated the tight confines and old-school intensity of the 21,944-capacity stadium to secure a vital three points, temporarily moving up to second in the Premier League table.
The match was a tense, bruising affair befitting a traditional fixture at the venerable venue, but Chelsea’s quality eventually shone through. It took until the 37th minute for the breakthrough, and it was a moment of sheer composure from Portuguese winger Neto.
After a period of sustained pressure, Neto found space inside the box, arriving with perfect timing to send a diving header past the Burnley goalkeeper. The goal, right before the break, sucked the energy out of the home crowd in the Bob Lord Stand and gave the Londoners a crucial half-time lead.
Burnley fought with typical grit after the restart, leveraging the close proximity of the supporters in the James Hargreaves Stand to drive them forward.
Their attempts to equalise, however, were expertly repelled by a solid Chelsea defence.
The contest was finally put to bed in the 88th minute.
A swift counter-attack saw Neto turn provider, setting up World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez who made no mistake, smashing the ball home to double the lead and send the travelling Chelsea contingent into raptures.
The final whistle confirmed Chelsea’s dominance, securing their third successive Premier League clean sheet and extending their impressive run of form.
While Turf Moor remains a spiritual home for English football, on this occasion, it proved to be a happy hunting ground for the Blue half of London
