Mauricio Pochettino: Chelsea need to improve in next transfer window
Wolves face Chelsea in a Christmas Eve clash this afternoon in the Premier League.
Gary O’Neil’s side aim to bounce back after a heavy loss to West Ham, while the Blues look to build momentum after edging past Newcastle on penalties midweek to reach the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
Chelsea hope to close the gap on Brighton in ninth, while a home win could bring Wolves, who won this fixture last season thanks to a Matheus Nunes stunner, level with the Blues and ensure they move away from the relegation zone.
“It is going to be tough, it is going to be difficult,” Pochettino conceded. “We have seen from many games that for the opponent it is very tough to play there at Molineux. It will be massive for us if we are able to win the three games [against Wolves, Crystal Palace and Luton].”
Follow the live action in the blog below and get all the latest match odds and tips here:
Premier League: Wolves v Chelsea
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
69 mins: Dawson is unable to continue after picking up that injury while saving his team. He’s replaced by the Uruguay international defender Santiago Bueno as Wolves look to hold on to another impressive home win at Molineux.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:29
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
68 mins: There have been a flurry of bookings in this second half, including for Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson – both for dissent. It means Palmer will miss Chelsea’s next game against Crystal Palace. Daft.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:27
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
65 mins: Surely this time – no! Nice move from Chelsea, as Nkunku fakes a shot and shifts it to Palmer on the edge, who finds the open Sterling! The goal was gaping but Dawson gets across brilliantly to get the sliding challenge in. The Wolves defender is hurt but he’s saved his team.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:25
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
63 mins: OFF THE LINE! Chelsea have woken up at last! And it’s almost a debut goal for Nkunku! The France international prods a finish through a host of bodies but Toti Gomes was on the line to boot clear – Chelsea denied by an inch or two!
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:22
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
61 mins: PENALTY? No! Sterling goes to ground after tripping over Toti Gomes, but the referee points the other way! Weird one, and Chelsea are furious. It looked clumy from Gomes but also quite opportunistic from Sterling rather than an actually foul.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:21
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
59 mins: Double change for Chelsea – Christopher Nkunku is on for his Premier League debut, while Mykhailo Mudryk is introduced as well.
Ugochukwu and Broja make way – both were poor.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:18
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
57 mins: Just to sum up Chelsea, Jackson has another half chance as he gets played through into the box. He had some work to do but had no control or confidence in the situation and the chance quickly disappears.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:17
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Wolves 1-0 Chelsea
53 mins: Chelsea, what are you doing? Disasi gives the ball away cheaply as Wolves come forward – it’s fed to Hwang who is tugged down by Colwill before Chelsea clear. But that was such poor defending and it could even have been a penalty, but VAR decides no.
Lemina tries his luck from the angle and brings a save from Petrovic.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:14
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GOAL! Wolves 1-0 Chelsea (LEMINA 50’)
Wolves score from a corner, and that had been coming! It’s such a soft goal from a Chelsea point of view. Lemina is left unmarked in the box and doesn’t even need to jump to steer his header across goal and into the corner. Chelsea had looked vulnerable moments before and this time they are punished. Wolves lead!
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:09
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Wolves 0-0 Chelsea
48 mins: SAVE! Wolves should be ahead! From the corner from the right, Toti Gomes is free at the back post and looks certain to score! But Petrovic leaps across and makes the stop at his far post, before Chelsea scramble away.
Jamie Braidwood24 December 2023 14:08
