Southampton 1-5 Chelsea: Nigeria’s Joe Aribo scores but dominant Blues shine

Chelsea delivered a dominant performance against Southampton, winning 5-1 as they continued their push for the Premier League title.

The Blues came into the match full of confidence after a solid victory over Aston Villa the previous weekend. They carried that momentum into this game, making seven changes to their starting lineup, with Filip Jorgensen, Malo Gusto, Axel Disasi, Tosin Adarabioyo, Noni Madueke, Joao Felix, and Christopher Nkunku all included.

Southampton started with Super Eagles star Joe Aribo, while fellow Nigerian Paul Onuachu missed out due to injury.

Chelsea opened the scoring early through Axel Disasi, who headed in Enzo Fernandez’s corner. Southampton quickly equalised, with Kyle Walker-Peters setting up Joe Aribo for a simple finish.

The Blues regained their lead after a mistake by Southampton’s Joe Lumley. Noni Madueke intercepted a poor pass and assisted Christopher Nkunku for an easy tap-in. Shortly after, Madueke scored a brilliant solo goal, curling the ball into the far corner to make it 3-1.

Southampton’s hopes were further dashed when Jack Stephens received a red card. Chelsea capitalised, adding two more goals in the second half through Cole Palmer and Jadon Sancho.

The emphatic win lifted Chelsea above Arsenal to second place in the league table.