Match report: Southampton 1 Chelsea 1

The Blues end 2014 with a draw after coming from behind at St Mary’s courtesy of a trademark moment of Eden Hazard brilliance in first-half injury time.

We laid siege to the Southampton goal after the break on the hunt for a precious winner but the decisive breakthrough would not come and so we had to settle for a point on the South Coast, having been controversially denied a penalty when Cesc Fabregas was tripped. It was our hosts that opened the scoring through Sadio Mane’s one-on-one finish but we ended an entertaining first half on level terms after Hazard beat two men and finished emphatically in the corner. Clear opportunities proved hard to come by after the interval, with substitute Didier Drogba twice close to converting Hazard crosses with time almost up against a Saints side reduced to 10 men very late on, Morgan Schneiderlin the man dismissed for two bookable offences. The draw ensures the Blues will top the league at the start of next year, which begins with a trip to White Hart Lane, Tottenham our opponents.

TEAM NEWS

Considering the proximity to our last game, not much over 48 hours ago, Jose Mourinho elected to make three changes to the side that beat West Ham so impressively on Boxing Day. Filipe Luis, John Mikel Obi and Andre Schurrle came in at the expense of Cesar Azpilicueta, Oscar and Willian respectively. Cesc Fabregas moved further forward into the number 10 role he recently took up at Stoke and Derby, allowing Mikel to line up alongside Nemanja Matic in the middle. Filipe Luis for Azpilicueta and Schurrle for Willian were direct replacements. Ronald Koeman brought in four new faces from his side that had defeated Crystal Palace two days ago. Captain Jose Fonte returned from suspension, while Victor Wanyama, Dusan Tadic and Matt Targett all started, the latter for the first time in the Premier League. He replaced our own Ryan Bertrand, ineligible under the terms of his loan deal. Regular right-back Nathaniel Clyne was injured so Maya Yoshida moved across.

FIRST HALF

A beautiful winter’s afternoon on the South Coast was in stark contrast to our fixture here last season - that win coming in the teeming rain and swirling wind – and it was with the sun in mind that John Terry chose to switch ends after winning the coin toss, leaving Thibaut Courtois in the shade. Perhaps his opposite number Frazer Forster was blinded by the brightness of the sun when he came out to claim an early Fabregas corner, misjudging the flight of the delivery but getting just enough fingertips on it to deny Terry a third opening goal in as many games. Schurrle, making a fine diagonal run, got on the end of a Hazard pass before Forster but from a very tight angle his chipped finish was never in danger of threatening the Southampton goal. It had been a good opening 10 minutes but Southampton then managed to build up a head of steam culminating in the first goal of the day. The danger began with a corner that was twice won aerially by a man in red and white, eventually requiring Terry on the stretch to put it behind to stop Fonte converting from close range. Next it was Cahill’s turn to produce on the slide, expertly preventing Tadic’s through pass reaching Mane, so when the same pair linked up again on 17 minutes you couldn’t say the Blues hadn’t been warned. A deep Southampton ball was chested down by Pelle to Tadic who first time flicked the ball over our backline. As Terry stepped up Mane darted in behind; this time the ball reached the Senegalese who raced away and clinically lofted it past the upright Courtois. That was the first league goal we had conceded since Newcastle and now all eyes were on how the Blues would respond. Fabregas cunningly wriggled free down the left, not for the first time, and though his cross deflected over Forster it was also agonisingly behind Schurrle, one of many near-misses and what-ifs in the opening 45.

The Blues certainly weren’t struggling to keep possession but against a combative and well-organised Southampton side that decisive moment proved elusive until time added on at the end of the half. After another coming together in midfield the ball rolled in Fabregas’s direction not far from the halfway line. The Spaniard chipped first time over Yoshida, judging the spin perfectly for Hazard to dash on to. He dropped a shoulder, cut inside the retreating Japanese defender, and then his compatriot Alderweireld, before firing the ball across goal into the far-right corner. It really was trademark Hazard, the timing and execution of the strike an excellent way to mark his first league goal away from Stamford Bridge since our win at Hull in January. Mourinho and his men could now feel much better about things at the interval.

 SECOND HALF

The manager deemed a change necessary before the restart, replacing Schurrle with Willian, and the Brazilian was in the thick of the action early on, having two shots blocked in quick succession. The second fell to Fabregas in the box who was tripped by the slipping Targett. Instead referee Taylor deemed it a dive and booked Fabregas, much to the midfielder’s frustration. Chelsea had been harshly denied a penalty. Yoshida followed him into the book for scything down Hazard and our winger then found space behind him to chest down a lofted Fabregas pass, chest, swivel and shoot with his left just beyond Forster’s far-post. By the hour mark the Blues were really starting to turn the screw and one brilliant move involving the busy Filipe Luis, Hazard and Diego Costa nearly allowed the striker a clear sight of goal. Koeman brought Florin Gordos on for Yoshida, shifting Alderweireld to right-back. The waves of blue kept coming but clear chances remained at a premium with increasing numbers of home players making their way behind the ball.

With a quarter-of-an-hour to go Mourinho signalled his attacking intentions further by replacing the excellent Mikel with Didier Drogba. With his first involvement the Ivorian almost played in Diego Costa, and then our top scorer slipped when running on to an errant back pass. Before that chance Schneiderlin was booked for a crude late tackle on Hazard and when the same man hacked Fabregas down with time almost up, he had to go. The Blues kept going and twice in the final four minutes Drogba was inches away from converting a low Hazard centre. Filipe Luis had a shot blocked by the massed ranks of red 10 yards from goal but there was to be no breakthrough and so we head back to London with a well-earned point. Man City also drew later in the afternoon so our lead remains three points. Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Courtois; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry (c), Filipe Luis; Mikel (Drogba 74), Matic; Schurrle (Willian h/t), Fabregas, Hazard; Diego Costa (Remy 89). Unused subs Cech, Zouma, Azpilicueta, Ramires. Scorer Hazard 45+1 Booked Matic 31, Fabregas 55 Southampton (4-4-2): Forster; Yoshida (Gardos 62), Fonte (c), Alderweireld, Targett; Wanyama, Schneiderlin, S.Davis (Long 77), Tadic (Ward-Prowse 58); Pelle, Mane. Unused subs K.Davis, Isgrove, McCarthy, Reed. Scorer Mane 17 Booked Yoshida 57, Schneiderlin 71, Pelle 90+5 Sent off Schneiderlin 89 (second yellow) Referee Anthony Taylor