West Ham 0-3 Chelsea: Jackson double helps Blues to routine derby win

Chelsea continued their impressive start to life under Enzo Maresca with a 3-0 win over local rivals West Ham at the London Stadium, as Nicolas Jackson scored twice.

Jackson needed just 18 minutes to breach a porous West Ham defence twice, breaking in behind to produce two composed finishes and leave the hosts with a mountain to climb.

Julen Lopetegui’s team briefly improved before half-time but their hopes of a comeback were dashed by Cole Palmer’s strike almost immediately after the interval.

While Chelsea are now unbeaten in four league games and sit second in the early-season standings, West Ham remain 14th with four points ahead of Saturday’s other fixtures.

3 & 5 – Enzo Maresca is the first manager to win each of his first three away Premier League games since Pep Guardiola in September 2016, while Chelsea have won five consecutive away top-flight matches for the first time since December 2021 under Thomas Tuchel. Travels. pic.twitter.com/RsNZnwsPJW

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 21, 2024

Jackson caught West Ham cold with the opener inside four minutes, slotting his finish through Alphonse Areola’s legs after being played in by Jadon Sancho, who was making his first Chelsea start after assisting Christopher Nkunku’s winner at Bournemouth.

He had his second 14 minutes later, finishing with the outside of his boot after receiving a pinpoint throughball from Moises Caicedo, then he turned provider as the Blues killed the contest early in the second half.

Just 68 seconds after the restart, Jackson scampered over halfway with the home defence retreating, then teed up Palmer to crash his finish into the far corner and cap an enjoyable outing for Maresca’s side.

Data Debrief: Two sides to Jackson’s game

Jackson was criticised for his wastefulness in his debut season at Stamford Bridge, underperforming his expected goals (xG) figures by a significant margin with 14 Premier League goals from 18.64 xG.

He looks a player reborn under Maresca, though, taking his two early chances with great composure to move to four Premier League goals for the campaign – only Erling Haaland (nine) has more.

Most Premier League Goal Involvements since 2023-24:

Erling Haaland – 41
Cole Palmer – 39
Ollie Watkins – 35
Mohamed Salah – 34
Bukayo Saka – 30
Son Heung-Min – 29
Phil Foden – 27
Nicolas Jackson – 25
Alexander Isak – 25
Jarrod Bowen – 24 pic.twitter.com/mncVTQZlHk

— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) September 21, 2024

He also showed his unselfish side by teeing up Palmer for a crashing finish shortly after the second half began, earning his second assist of the season.

Since the start of last season, Jackson and Palmer have combined for 10 Premier League goals – at least two more than any other duo. Their partnership will continue to be key in this new Chelsea era.