Chelsea recorded their first victory of 2018 with what was a convincing 4-0 success at Brighton on Saturday in the Premier League.
Eden Hazard and Willian both scored sublime first-half goals, before the brilliant Belgian added a third late on and Victor Moses netted, as the Blues secured an important win on a rain-soaked south coast.
Here, we look at how Antonio Conte’s players rated:
CHELSEA
Willy Caballero: Very fortunate not to have given away a penalty when he clearly brought down Ezequiel Schelotto. Looked shaky on his league bow for the club but did produce outstanding saves to deny Tomer Hemed’s header and later Schelotto. 6
Cesar Azpilicueta: His usual reliable self in the backline and was very much the leader for the Blues. 7
Andreas Christensen: Took a heavy blow on the head in second-half collision and probably shouldn’t have played on. Substituted for Luiz, but before that, committed as ever to the cause. 6
Antonio Rudiger: Schelotto caused both him and Marcos Alonso plenty of problems down the left but he showed good composure in the back three to keep Brighton at bay. 6
Victor Moses: Excellent pull-back for Eden Hazard to emphatically score the opener and was a marauding force down the right. His late goal was icing on the cake. 7
N’Golo Kante: No thrills in the middle of the pitch and held his central position as ever to protect the away side’s defence. 6
Tiemoue Bakayoko: Could have conceded first-half penalty on Schelotto but recovered well and did a lot of the unnoticed engine room running that frustrated the hosts. 6
Marcos Alonso: Not his best game and his ball-watching could have proved costly when Schelotto caught him on his heels and went through on goal. Caballero, though, made a fine save. Taken off with 15 minutes to go. 5
Willian: Scored a stunning second after driving at the hosts and playing neat triangles with Hazard and Batshuayi. Involved in the opener, too – plus his second-half free-kick hit the post. Set-up Hazard’s second. Bundle of energy. 8
Michy Batshuayi: More than played his part in Chelsea’s decisive double on six minutes and led the line well against a physical Seagulls defence. Should have impressed Conte. 7
Eden Hazard: Showed world-class ability to compose himself and finish beautifully for Chelsea’s first goal. His dribble and finish for his brace was quality too. A constant menace and the most talented player on the pitch. 9
SUBSTITUTES
Charly Musonda: Given ten minutes to impress Conte when Willian’s legs were spared and did exactly that. Perfect assist for Moses with a clever lofted through ball. 7
Davide Zappacosta: Entered the fray to shore things up but his job was made easier when Chelsea got the third goal. 5
David Luiz: Could it be his last appearance in a Chelsea jersey with a January move beckoning? Brought on for injured Christensen and slotted in without too much fuss. 6