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LIVE BLOG
90+3min: Full time, Chelsea win!
90+1min: Hudson-Odoi weaves through a couple before unleashing a shot, which goes high.
89min: Moses gets in Kante’s way and the move breaks down. BATE counter, but Cahill does well to cover and play back to Kepa who gets Chelsea going again.
83min: Loftus-Cheek still looking hungry for more, and he’s in on goal but a bit wide of it and his cutback is defended well by the combination of goalkeeper and central defender.
79min: Chelsea looking lost and confused as BATE destroy the defense on the wide set piece, reducing Chelsea’s lead to 3-1.
77min: BATE just offside, which means that Kepa’s amazing save is lost to the record books. Kante replaces Kovacic for Chelsea’s final change.
75min: CHO tries the same shot at RLC’s third, from about the same place, but it’s blocked for a corner. BATE make their final sub, with Yablonski replacing Baga.
73min: At the other end, Ivanic shoots well high.
72min: Moses runs at goal but loses the ball; it falls to Giroud who turns his man and takes aim. It looks like it can’t be anything other than a goal, but the goalkeeper somehow saves it. Unlucky.
70min: RLC takes on half the BATE team, and almost beats them all before getting crowded out in the penalty area. Fabregas then looks for Giroud, but that connection has been inches off all night and it once again just misses. BATE make their second change, Tuominen replacing Signevich.
67min: Zappacosta goes for the piledriver, goalkeeper parries and the defender clears ahead of Emerson.
63min: RLC steams forward and but the move is gone via Moses’s terrible first touch. BATE counter and it’s the substitute Ivanic who lets a shot go, their first of the game. Christensen partially deflects it and Kepa gathers easily.
61min: CHO gets right into it, taking on a couple before switching play to the right where Moses cuts in and tries his luck with his left foot. No trouble for the goalkeeper.
60min: Ivanic straight into the action, but Cahill defends well and wins a goal kick. Hudson-Odoi makes his long-awaited appearance for Sarri, replacing Pedro. It’s his European debut.
58min: Giroud almost gets his goal, but the goalkeeper parries just in the nick of time ahead of the Chelsea striker. Meanwhile, Hleb makes way for Ivanic.
57min: Early sub from the boss as Victor Moses gives Willian a rest and takes up position on the left wing.
56min: Willian spanks one towards goal, but the goalkeeper parries, just.
53min: AND THERE IS THE HAT-TRICK! Loftus-Cheek picks out the far corner after Chelsea storm forward again through Pedro. His shot is blocked but it’s straight to RLC, who picks out the corner with ease. 3-0 CHELSEA!
hattrick pic.twitter.com/XwQUsWeq1H
— Wayne Dansforth (@DansforthWayne) October 25, 2018
52min: Kovacic gets his knee stepped on/into and his screams cut through the night air. But he seems fine to continue. Chelsea stroll forward and RLC is pushed over in the box, but no call.
50min: Latest Chelsea corner just eludes the top of Giroud’s head and Cahill can’t quite control. BATE counter, but it’s poor.
48min: Great work from Pedro to win the ball in the final third but BATE survive.
46min: Emerson gives away an early corner, BATE’s first of the night; Chelsea clear after a bit of head-tennis.
HALF-TIME: No changes for either side and we’re back underway as BATE get the ball rolling. A third Chelsea goal would kill the game in short order.
45+2min: Chelsea see out the remaining first-half minutes with easy possession, punctuated by a Zappacosta cross and a Willian overhead kick effort. Great first half from the Blues!
45min: Willian has a go from distance but it’s an easy save for the goalkeeper
42min: Willian continues to make fools of the defenders, finds RLC but his shot is saved. Pedro collects the rebound and tries his luck as well but it’s blocked. Hleb leads the counter but is chased down by Kovacic who wins the ball with a tremendous tackle from behind. Hleb’s foot gets stuck underneath Kovacic’s leg however and the former Arsenal man looks to have twisted his ankle rather badly. He limps off while being held up by the physios.
39min: RLC has a header on goal from another cross from the right, but it’s wide of the post.
38min: Hleb with a wonderful turn sets BATE into attack and they looked to have won a corner until Christensen steams in from nowhere to clear for a throw. Christensen gets up holding his arm, but hopefully it’s just a friction burn.
36min: BATE try to work a chance, but Chelsea defend well and launch a counter through Willian. He almost finds Giroud with a through ball, but it’s just a bit too long and goes out for a goal kick.
34min: Chelsea clear on the third asking, as Kovacic draws a foul from Hleb, who becomes the game’s first booking.
32min: RLC takes of five and wins a corner. Willian takes and the goalkeeper punches. Fabregas collects ... or should, but his first touch is terrible and BATE are in on the counter. Pedro tracks back and gives away the professional foul, out wide right, level with the top of the box.
31min: But his snapshot is well wide. Meanwhile, Christensen stays down after a clash of heads with the BATE center forward, but seems okay to carry on.
30min: Fabregas finds Willian, who combines with Loftus-Cheek to create a half-chance for Giroud. It’s cleared, but RLC storms forward and finds Kovacic, who’s just unlucky with his first touch. The ball is put up for Giroud again and the goalkeeper punches weakly, straight to Willian.
27min: BATE center forward jumps high and lands like a sack of potatoes right on his hip. He stays down for some treatment and carries on. RLC gets some tactical instruction in the meantime.
This has been Sarri & Loftus-Cheek at virtually every break in play this half #cfc pic.twitter.com/9PvELTzAOF
— Liam Twomey (@liam_twomey) October 25, 2018
26min: Kovacic, Fabregas have shots blocked in quick succession as Chelsea resume their siege of the BATE goal. Meanwhile, Cahill looks to have come off worse while committing a foul, but looks okay to carry on.
24min: Kovacic and Willian toy with BATE after a strong run from Emerson. Willian finds Kova all alone at the far post, but he takes one touch too many and is closed down by two.
21min: A bit of a lull sees BATE keep the ball for a bit, but Chelsea comfortable enough.
18min: Willian wins another corner, which he takes. Holds up three fingers, but the goalkeeper claims just ahead of Cahill’s head.
17min: Another good cross from Zappacosta, but no one’s there to tap it home and BATE clear.
15min: Willian’s delivery reaches the backpost, where Christensen’s unlucky to not get a better touch on it. Instead of a goal, it thus trickles into the goalkeeper’s arms.
14min: The shooting gallery continues as Pedro’s curled effort is deflected wide. Excellent work from Kovacic to create that chance.
11min: Fabregas picks out Pedro’s excellent run with a ball over the top, but it’s just out of the reach of the winger and it bounces through to the goalkeeper.
8min: GOOOALL!!! It’s Loftus-Cheek again! RLC gets the touch to Zappacosta’s corner, just ahead of Giroud. BATE are terrible and it’s an absolute siege from Chelsea. 2-0!
7min: Willian wriggles free and works a shooting chance, looks goalbound until a big deflection loops it over the crossbar. The corner’s taken the short and the second ball is half-cleared. Kovacic wins the ball back in midfield and Zappacosta wins a corner.
5min: Emerson falls asleep for a second and gets on the wrong side of his man. He looks to have fouled the BATE winger, but the referee is unmoved and does not give the free kick.
2min: GOOOALL!! That was easy. Zappacosta cross, Loftus-Cheek easy finish from 10 yards out. 1-0 CHELSEA!
RLC not wasting any time pic.twitter.com/WODHUEnjj7
— Zac (@Chlzey) October 25, 2018
KICK-OFF: Chelsea get us underway and immediately establish possession.
Europa League matchday three, back at the Bridge and ready to take on Belorussian champions BATE Borisov. Chelsea are still unbeaten since the official start of the season (i.e. not counting the Community Shield), so let’s add another one to the win column.
Rotation was expected and that is exactly what we have, with a full rotation across the back and plenty of changes elsewhere, too. Ruben Loftus-Cheek starts and Callum Hudson-Odoi makes the bench!
This is Willian’s 250th appearance for the club.
Here we go!
Chelsea starting lineup (4-3-3):
Arrizabalaga | Emerson, Christensen, Cahill (c), Zappacosta | Kovacic, Fabregas, Loftus-Cheek | Willian, Giroud, Pedro
Substitutes from: Caballero, Rudiger, Kante, Barkley, Moses, Hudson-Odoi, Morata
BATE starting lineup (4-3-3):
Scherbitski | M.Volodko, Filipenko, Filipovic, Rios | Hleb, Dragun, Baga | Stasevich (c), Signevich, Skavysh
Substitutes from: Chichkan, Yablonski, Berezkin, Ivanic, Volkov, Tuominen, Moukam
Date / Time: Thursday, October 25th, 2018, 20:00 BST; 3:00pm EDT; 12:30am IST (next day)
Venue: Stamford Bridge, SW6
Referee: Paolo Silvio Mazzoleni
On TV: BT Sport 2 (UK); none (USA); Sony Ten 2 HD (India); elsewhere
Streaming online: BT Sport Live (UK); B/R Live (USA); SONY LIV (India)
Be excellent to each other.