- Tammy Abraham scored a brace as Chelsea beat Norwich 3-2 to give Frank Lampard his first win in chargeĀ
- Abraham gave Chelsea an early lead but Todd Cantwell equalised for Norwich three minutes laterĀ
- Mason Mount restored Chelsea’s advantage only for the in-form Pukki to pull Norwich level againĀ
- After Abraham made it 3-2, Ben Godfrey came close to equalising but his header hit the crossbarĀ
Frank Lampard needed this as much as match-winner Tammy Abraham.
On an occasion that both will remember for some time, Lampard claimed his first win as Chelsea manager largely thanks to striker Tammy Abraham first Premier League goals.
A day after Lampard implored his players to step up and start filling the goals void left by Eden Hazard, Abraham did just at Carrow Road, justifying his recall in the process with two goals either side of another impressive goalscoring contribution from Mason Mount.
Tammy Abraham scored a brace as Chelsea beat Norwich 3-2 to give Frank Lampard his first win in charge of the club
The young striker made it 3-2 to Chelsea with an impressive strike in the 68th minute of the game
Abraham celebrates with his team-mates after he put Chelsea 3-2 in front in an entertaining encounter against Norwich
Lampard is delighted after 21-year-old striker Abraham put Chelsea in the ascendancy against Norwich
After a difficult start to his Chelsea tenure, Lampard will be delighted to have overseen his first win in charge of the club
Abraham opened the scoring with just three minutes gone at Carrow Road as he got his first goal for Chelsea
The strikerās first was historic for him as he opened his top flight account to start answering those beginning to raise questions about his ability to score at the top level.
And his second was memorable too, as his first ever league from outside the box after 56 previous efforts from inside it.
Three was the number that will please Lampard the most though ā the number of points his team left Norwich with after finally ensuring there was some tangible reward for their attacking improvement under their new boss.
In keeping with all of Chelseaās performances so far this season, there would still have plenty to worry Lampard even in victory.
In a madcap four-goal first half, Chelsea continued to look as vulnerable defensively as they have done in each of their previous three games and unfazed Norwich exploited their shakiness.
But this time, Chelsea produced the goods in goal to finish victorious.
Abraham showed impressive composure to find the back of the net as Chelsea took an early lead away to Norwich
The Chelsea players celebrated with manager Frank Lampard following Abraham’s goal against Norwich
Lampard shakes hands with Abraham after the 21-year-old was substituted in the 75th minute of the game
Lampardās bid for that elusive first win as Chelsea manager suffered a first setback when NāGolo Kante failed to recover from the ankle problem that had been troubling him this week and missed out altogether.
Then Pedro, who had been a fitness concern earlier in the week, suffered a hamstring problem in the warm-up and was replaced in the starting XI by Ross Barkley, making Lampardās team the youngest Chelsea team fielded in 25 years.
In his attempts to find a reliable source of goals it was Abrahamās chance to start again after Olivier Giroud spearheaded Chelseaās attack in the last two games without scoring.
Norwich have had no such problems thanks to man-of-the-moment Teemu Pukki.
His four goals in his first two Premier League games and fairytale rise have sparked Pukki-mania and not just in this part of Norfolk, with the Finnish frontman becoming a favourite among fantasy football managers.
Unsurprisingly after his hat-trick against Newcastle and Norwichās 3-1 win, the man who gets to pick Pukki for real, Daniel Farke, named an unchanged side.
Pukkiās first impact was to turn creator this time but only after Lampardās selection of Abraham was justified and Chelsea scored what will surely be one of the team goals of the season.
Kepa, Emerson and Zouma combined as Chelsea played their way out of their half from the back.
Teemu Pukki, who has enjoyed an excellent start to the season, celebrates after scoring Norwich’s second equaliser
Pukki found the back of the net in the 30th minute of the game, with Norwich twice coming from behind against Chelsea
Chelsea’s lead didn’t last long, with Todd Cantwell pulling Norwich level in the sixth minute during a lively start
Abraham was first to Zoumaās pass forward and cushioned it down to Mason Mount who spread the ball from left to right to Pulisic.
He drove forward, waiting patiently until Cesar Azpilicueta charged forward to provide the supporting overlapping run.
And waiting in the middle For the Spaniardās cross was Abraham, who held back while Norwichās defenders instinctively dropped towards their goal, leaving him in space 12 yards out to smash a sweetly-struck half-volley past Tim Krul.
Abraham needed that goal, and especially one of such quality, with questions, perhaps harshly, being asked of his suitability to lead the line at the top level having proven he has what it takes to plunder goals in the second tier.
And his relief was obvious as he made a beeline for his boss to celebrate, no doubt as public thanks not just for his faith in picking him but also supporting Abraham so emphatically after he was shamefully racially abused on social media following his European Super Cup penalty shootout miss against Liverpool.
Chelseaās lead, though, lasted just three minutes. Their appeals for a foul on Abraham by Ben Godfrey fell on deaf ears and Norwich capitalised.
Emiliano Buendia and Todd Cantwell combined first and then Pukki squared the ball across goal for young attacking midfielder Cantwell, who continued his run into the box, to open his Premier League account and lift the roof off Carrow Road.
Cantwell is congratulated by team-mate Teemu Pukki after he equalised for Norwich in their clash against Chelsea
The Norwich players congratulate Cantwell after he scored their first equaliser against Chelsea
Mason Mount jumps for joy after restoring Chelsea’s lead with his second Premier League goal in as many games
Mount celebrates having put Chelsea 2-1 in front, with the midfielder relishing playing in the Premier League
Calm lasted for 11 minutes before Chelsea restored their lead.
Jorginho gathered a loose Norwich ball, wasted no time fizzing it into Pulisic who in turn found Mount.
And Chelseaās exciting young midfielder enhanced his reputation, and chances of inclusion in Gareth Southgateās England squad on Thursday, further by showing impressive poise to cut inside and bury his second goal in two games.
This time there was no swift Norwich response and while camped in the hostsā half Emerson, Abraham, Andreas Christensen and Jorginho all had chances to extend Chelseaās lead.
Christensen only failed to as a result of a stunning save from Tim Krul who reacted brilliantly to tip the Daneās close-range header over.
And Chelsea were made to pay when Buendia slipped in the one man Chelsea would not have wanted running though on their goal behind the slow-to-react Kurt Zouma and Pukki added yet another goal to his earlier assist with a shot across goal that squeezed past Kepa.
Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic battles for the ball with Norwich’s Jamal Lewis during the first half of the game
Chelsea striker Abraham competes for possession with Norwich centre-back Grant Hanley during an intense tussle
The first-half goalfest ended there. As entertaining as the opening half was though, both managers will have headed down the tunnel with concerns about how brittle and vulnerable their teams looked defensively and how easy it was for the opposition to create chances.
Norwich appeared to have done nothing to change that from their perspective, conceding possession again in their own half to gift Mount another shooting chance before Pulisic found himelf in yards of space but could only fire into the side-netting.
Thankfully for Chelsea, their rearguard was let off the hook a little as Norwich slumped back into their own territory, got 11 men behind the ball and then struggled to pose a genuine threat when they had the chance to counter.
Ross Barkley controls the ball for Chelsea as the midfielder attempts to make a major impact against Norwich
Norwich’s Emi Buendia competes for the ball with Chelsea’s Emerson Palmieri during an eventful game
Krul was called into action on the hour by Emerson before Pukki tested Kepa for the first time in the second half at the other end.
From that save, Chelsea broke and went ahead for the third time.
Kepa rolled the ball out instantly to Barkley and the ball was shuttled firstly onto Mateo Kovacic and then Abraham.
He had little else on so drove at the Norwich defence, dropped his shoulder to get inside Grant Hanley and onto his right foot and Ben Godfrey and smashed his second past a wrong-footed Krul.
Soon after Godfrey headed against the bar but Chelsea held on to make it a memorable day for Lampard his staff and Abraham in particular.
source:dailymail
