Chelsea's 'goal-hungry' defenders protect Stamford Bridge from Wolves' attack

Chelsea are much more than just Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson! Although the two were the central figures when it comes to scoring goals in the Blues' ranks, tonight their defenders took over the offensive role, netting two out of three home team's goals. Tosin Adarabioyo, in the first half, made it 1-0, while Marc Cucurella scored for 2-1 at the hour mark.

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Noni Madueke sealed the Wolves' fate, finding the net only six minutes after the Spaniard. The only goal for visitors was courtesy of (guess what!) another defender, Matt Doherty, who exploited Robert Sanchez's blunder in the first-half added time. Wolverhampton awaited the break levelled with Chelsea but were ultimately crushed by Enzo Maresca's crew - 3-1.

In a far-from-interesting first half, the crowd could witness Chelsea's complete dominance, which was not reflected in the score and few memorable moments. In the 24th minute, Tosin Adarabioyo broke the deadlock after the ball got to him following Reece James' shot attempt. This way, the defender continued his scoring spree he started in the FA Cup clash against Morecambe when he netted a brace.

Wolverhampton were without a chance up until the added time, when their defender Matt Doherty exploited Robert Sanchez's harsh mistake, as Chelsea's custodian dropped the ball after a cross, allowing Wolves' player to pass it into the net and level the score seconds before the break.

The same story from the first 45 minutes continued after the break, and once again, Chelsea managed to crown their game control by taking the lead. Another Blues' defender was fatal for the Wolves, only this time it was Marc Cucurella, who joined one of his team's counters and finished it with a goal following Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall's assist at an hour mark.

The Wolves failed to quickly recover from shock, allowing Chelsea to net the third only six minutes later! Cole Palmer's free-kick cross found Trevoh Chalobah inside, the former Crystal Palace defender headed it for Noni Madueke, who put the ball into the empty net, making it 3-1!

Nicolas Jackson managed to score the fourth goal for the home team, but it was disallowed due to offside. Even though the visitors occasionally threatened over Jorgen Strand Larsen and Matheus Cunha, Maresca felt enough freedom to give a chance to some players with less playing time in the last 15 minutes.

Tonight's triumph helped Chelsea take over the fourth spot in the Premier League table from Man City, while Wolverhampton suffered the third consecutive defeat and sit in the 17th place with the same number of points as Ipswich in the relegation zone.

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 22

Saturday

Newcastle - Bournemouth 1-4 (1-2)

/Guimaraes 25 - Kluivert 6, 44, 90+2, Kerkez 90+6/

Brentford - Liverpool 0-2 (0-0)

/Darwin 90+1, 90+3/

Leicester - Fulham 0-2 (0-0)

/Smith Rowe 48, Traore 68/

West Ham - Crystal Palace 0-2 (0-0)

/Mateta 48, 89 pen/

Arsenal - Aston Villa 2-2 (1-0)

/Havertz 35, Martinelli 55 - Tielemans 60, Watkins 68/

Sunday

Everton - Tottenham 3-2 (3-0)

/Calvert-Lewin 13, Ndiaye 30, Gray 45+7 og - Kulusevski 77, Richarlison 90+2/

Man.Utd. - Brighton 1-3 (1-1)

/Fernandes 23 pen - Minteh 5, Mitoma 60, Rutter 76/

Nott.Forest - Southampton 3-2 (3-0)

/Anderson 11, Hudson-Odoi 28, Wood 41 - Bednarek 60, Onuachu 90+1/

Ipswich - Man. City 0-6 (0-3)

/Foden 27, 42, Kovacic 30, Doku 49, Haaland 57, McAtee 69/

Monday

Chelsea - Wolverhampton 3-1 (1-1)

/Adarabioyo 24, Cucurella 60, Madueke 66 - Doherty 45+5/