West Ham 0 Chelsea 1
Eden Hazard’s close-range header ensured Chelsea retained their five-point advantage at the top of the Premier League after a captivating London derby.
Hazard’s simple finish at the end of a delightful move deservedly put the Blues ahead on 22 minutes.
But despite creating numerous chances, the Capital One Cup winners had to survive long spells of West Ham pressure to stay in front after the break.
Chelsea played with supreme confidence early on and could easily have gone ahead had 17-goal striker Diego Costa not fired over the bar after a glorious move.
The hosts responded, with Cheikhou Kouyate forcing a fine close-range stop from the recalled Thibaut Courtois.
But Chelsea, with Oscar restored to the side and Kurt Zouma once again playing in midfield, were dominating possession and constantly probing the home defence.
And Hazard deservedly headed them in front after a fine counter-attack saw the Belgian convert an enticing Ramires cross for his 14th goal of the season.
Costa was then denied the chance to get a shot away by Carl Jenkinson when through on goal while the Hammers wasted a wonderful opening when Diafra Sakho’s weak header from six yards was saved by Courtois.
West Ham played with far greater urgency and tempo after the interval, Sakho going closest to scoring with a 15-yard strike that went wide.
But after surviving 10 difficult minutes, Ramires twice went close to extending the lead.
Hazard was the creator on both occasions, the Brazilian hitting the post with a good low attempt with his first effort and then forcing a superb save from keeper Adrian with a headed opportunity.
The Hammers came again and only a combination of some strong goalkeeping by Courtois and some brave defending – most notably a brilliant Gary Cahill challenge – kept Chelsea ahead.
And in nearly eight minutes of time added on, substitute Willian should have added a second goal to match second-placed Manchester City’s 2-0 victory over Leicester City.
Chelsea: Courtois, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Ramires, Zouma, Fabregas, Oscar (Willian 74), Hazard (Remy 96), Costa (Drogba 93).
Subs not used: Cech, Luis, Cuadrado, Loftus-Cheek.
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This post was last modified on 05/03/2015