Chelsea Breeze Pass Southampton 0-3

Chelsea Breeze Pass Southampton 0-3

Chelsea head coach Maurizio Sarri expects Ross Barkley to become “very important for the England national team” after the midfielder scored and provided an assist in the Blues’ win at Southampton.

Barkley set up Chelsea’s opener with a fine pass to Eden Hazard, who finished with aplomb, before netting their second himself, tapping in Olivier Giroud’s acrobatic cross.

In doing so, Barkley became the first Englishman to score and assist in a Premier League game for Chelsea since Frank Lampard in December 2013.

“Today he played really well,” Sarri said of Barkley. “I am really happy with him because from the beginning he has improved, day by day, week by week, match by match.

“Potentially, he is a great player because he has quality, very important qualities from the physical point of view, from the technical point of view, now he’s improving from the tactical point of view.

“I think he will become very important in England and for the England national team.”

Alvaro Morata scored Chelsea’s third deep into injury time, chipping over oncoming home goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, after a slick passing move.

Defeat for Mark Hughes’ side means they remain in 16th, and their run without a win against the Premier League’s ‘big six’ is extended to 26 games.

Meanwhile, the Blues have now won nine of their 11 games across all competitions this season, and sit second in the Premier League after Liverpool and Manchester City shared a goalless draw.

There were 31 passes made in the build-up to Alvaro Morata’s goal for Chelsea against Southampton; the most of any goal in the Premier League this season

Few believed the Chelsea squad would be able to alter their style of play to match Sarri’s expectations when the Italian was appointed in July.

But in simple terms, they have flourished. And ‘Sarriball’ was on show for all to see in the first 15 minutes at St Mary’s, as the Blues held 86% of possession.

Although Southampton did grow into the game after that opening spell, in which Willian struck the bar, they could not keep Chelsea at bay for long.

Hazard’s finish was typically clinical, but Barkley should also take plaudits for the opener, as it was the former Everton man who dispossessed Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in midfield before playing a perfectly weighted pass to the Belgian.

That assist was Barkley’s first in the league since April 2017, and 12 minutes into the second half, he notched his first league goal since May 2017 by tapping in Giroud’s cross.

Barkley, who was named in Gareth Southgate’s latest England squad on Thursday, was substituted on 81 minutes after a fine afternoon’s work, but Chelsea didn’t let up and they added a third deep into injury time.

Hazard again was at the heart of it as he slid in Morata, who dinked over McCarthy to score his second in as many games, after netting the winner in Thursday’s Europa League clash with Vidi.

The international break has perhaps come at a bad time for Sarri and his team, given their form, but nonetheless they will carry plenty of confidence into their next Premier League match against Manchester United on Saturday, 20 October.