Diego Costa once again proved to be the hero for Chelsea as the Blues beat West Brom 1-0 in a hard-fought match at Stamford Bridge. An excellent defensive display by the Baggies meant that the hosts could not break the deadlock until the 76^th minute. However, one moment of brilliance from Costa was all it took to send Chelsea back on top of the league table with nine consequent wins, a feat last achieved in 2007.

Diego Costa

The first half proved to be frustrating for the Blues who dominated possession but failed to create any real chances. Salomon Rondon and James Morrison made some impressive early efforts and it was West Brom that had more attempts on goal. Chris Brunt was in the thick of action throughout but earned a yellow card for his foul on Costa. David Luiz had a couple of defensive slip-ups that could have proven to be costly for Chelsea.

N’Golo Kante almost got a lucky break around the half an hour mark but sent the ball just wide. It wasn’t until the 41^st minute that David Luiz gave Chelsea their first shot on target, though it proved to be an easy save for keeper Foster.

Chelsea pressed hard in the second half but could not find an opening, thanks to some impeccably tight marking by West Brom. Matt Phillips made some determined attempts to score after the break and only some fantastic defending by Gary Cahill prevented West Brom from taking the lead around the 65^th minute. A pass from Cesc Fabregas and some bad defending by McAuley finally gave Diego Costa the chance to send the ball into the top corner of the goal with a left-footed strike and drive the home crowd wild with his 12^th goal of the season. As always, a jubilant Antonio Conte could be seen celebrating on the sidelines.

A rejuvenated Chelsea created several more chances after this. In what would have been an amusing reversal of roles, Costa almost assisted Fabregas to score in the 87^th minute. It was not to be, however and the Blues could not improve on their one goal. With three points in hand Craig Dawson is set to miss the next match after receiving a yellow card. Following a foul on Costa, he narrowly avoided a second. Kante picked up a yellow card for an incorrect throw-in of all things. Gareth McAuley, Claudio Yacob and Nemanja Matic were also booked.

Tags: Antonio Conte, Chelsea, Diego Costa, Premier League, Review, West Bromwich Albion