Premier League football returned to Stamford Bridge on Saturday following the international break, as Chelsea welcomed a winless Bournemouth side desperate for their first points of the season. The break arrived at a fortunate moment for Xabi Alonso's men, who had been grappling with a growing injury list in recent weeks. Moises Caicedo had featured for only around fifteen minutes all season, Reece James was sidelined with a hamstring problem, while both Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer had been managing knocks of their own. The three-week pause allowed the squad to recover, and Alonso named a side closer to full strength for the visit of the Cherries.
The timing could hardly have been worse for Marco Rose, whose Bournemouth side arrived at Stamford Bridge having collected just three points from their opening five league fixtures. The German coach continues to search for a formula to replace the impact of predecessor Andoni Iraola, and his task was made harder by the absences of Alex Scott, Justin Kluivert and Eli Junior Kroupi, all unavailable for the trip to west London.
Chelsea had extra reason to celebrate before kickoff, with the club confirming a new contract for Cole Palmer earlier in the day, adding to the positive atmosphere around the ground ahead of the match.
Once the game got underway, the hosts wasted little time asserting control. Chelsea raced into a 2-0 lead inside the opening quarter of an hour, catching Bournemouth cold and leaving the visitors looking shaken by the ferocity of the start. The away side struggled to find any rhythm as Chelsea pressed forward with intent, dominating both possession and territory in the early exchanges.
Bournemouth's best route back into the contest appeared to come from set pieces, with Dean Huijsen's teammate Marcus Tavernier and winger Alex Henderson both looking for opportunities down the flanks. Henderson in particular was a persistent threat, firing a shot narrowly wide and then seeing another effort loop just off target, though he was left frustrated when the referee waved away his appeals for a corner kick.
The Cherries did have a brief moment of hope just past the twenty-minute mark when Tavernier swung in a low corner that Christie met inside the box, going down under pressure to claim a penalty. VAR officials reviewed the incident at length, but the check ultimately concluded there had been no foul, and the spot-kick appeal was turned down, much to the relief of the home supporters.
Chelsea continued to look the more threatening side as the half progressed. A driving run from Levi Colwill released Marc Chavarria down the right, and his cross found its way to Morgan Rogers, though the Bournemouth box was well populated and his effort failed to trouble goalkeeper Martinez. Rogers was also involved at the other end of the pitch, winning a promising free-kick high on the right after being fouled by Smith, giving Chelsea another chance to extend their advantage.
At the back, Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Petrovic was rarely troubled, comfortably dealing with a Henderson cross, while Bournemouth's long throw routine, delivered by Hill, caused few problems as Rogers cleared the danger with ease. With Chelsea firmly in command and Bournemouth still searching for answers, Marco Rose's side faced an uphill battle to salvage anything from the afternoon at Stamford Bridge.
Based on reporting from Standard Sport (standard-football).