Chelsea find relief with comfortable win over Luton, thanks to Raheem Sterling’s brace

Raheem Sterling scored twice and continued his excellent start to the Premier League season as Chelsea overcame nerves to beat Luton 3-0 at Stamford Bridge.

A game that threatened to enter familiar goalless territory for Mauricio Pochettino’s team came to life midway through the second half when Sterling scored his second goal of the match after breaking the deadlock in the 17th minute with a superb solo effort. .

Minutes later, the scorer turned supplier when he crossed Nicholas Jackson, who scored his first goal for Chelsea and gave the hosts their first three-goal league win since beating Wolves last October.

Prior to this success, Rob Edwards’ team had evoked a familiar sense of frustration from home fans who witnessed their team struggle to open top division rookies until Sterling’s brilliance finally helped them cement their dominance and give Pochettino his first win. .

Chelsea’s first chance went through just six minutes later. Luton failed to hit the ball decisively from a free kick from the right, and Sterling intercepted the ball with a thunderous volley from 12 yards. His shot was clean and true, but Thomas Kaminsky kept up with him and had great possession of the ball.

Moises Caicedo, who had just conceded a penalty on his debut against West Ham, showed even more excitement in his first home start when he allowed Tahit Chong to forfeit possession in his own half. The Luton winger left his opponent on the turf and ran away, then shot wide to avoid blushing at Chelsea’s record-breaking signing.

For Chelsea it was an urgent, though not entirely guaranteed, start. In the 14th minute, Ben Chilwell successfully contacted Jackson and provided Enzo Fernandez with the opportunity to score a goal. The World Cup winner’s shot came early when he went wide of the corner of the post and the crossbar.

The first goal was entirely due to Sterling. Picking up the ball from the right after a Malo Gusto pass, he purposefully shot from the flank, burst into the box and crashed into three defenders, and then delivered an accurate left foot shot past Kaminsky.

In the second half, pressure from Chelsea continued. First, Ben Chilwell played a one-two with Jackson and shot on goal, but chose the wrong line and looked for a pass instead of a shot. Jackson then tried to beat Kaminsky at the near post himself, and the Luton keeper did a good job.

The inclusion of Caicedo meant a more advanced role for Fernandes and the Argentine appeared determined to right his costly penalty miss against West Ham. He was the next to come in close, reaching the back post to meet Sterling’s superb low pass into the box. Kaminsky, who became increasingly vulnerable as the game progressed, hit the ball to safety.

But while Chelsea’s dominance was unrelenting, Luton’s threat remained. Their moment seemed to come just at the hour mark. Carlton Morris held the ball well inside the box and helped pass the ball through Elijah Adebayo to the feet of Ryan Giles, whose energetic effort seemed destined to go beyond Robert Sanchez until Gusto’s heroic block deflected the ball into the hands of the Chelsea goalkeeper.

Much of the hosts’ attacking play suffered from attempts to make the game harder, but nothing like that happened in the second leg. Gusto, who had been a dangerous striker all night, pushed the ball into the box, pushing off from a full-back, and Sterling sent a cross into the bottom corner with a cold-blooded right boot, finally calming Chelsea’s nerves.

The mood of Stamford Bridge suddenly changed, and in a few minutes it was three. Fernandez, now looking confident in his new role, sent a nimble spin ball to Sterling, who almost nonchalantly pulled it out of the air and drove it into the target, and Jackson scored his first goal in blue.

It was a stylish goal that fans in this part of West London were once accustomed to. They will hope that the turn has finally been made.