Two late goals against Bournemouth finally gave Frank Lampard his first win since his return as Chelsea’s interim manager.
The Blues had lost all four Premier League games since Lampard’s return in April, but had led through Conor Gallagher’s early header.
Matias Vina levelled for Bournemouth, but Benoit Badiashile and Joao Felix struck inside the last 10 minutes.
Relegation remains a possibility for the Cherries with three games left, while Chelsea are 11th in the table.
Bournemouth’s best spell came early in the second half when Vina missed a chance for a second and Dango Ouattara headed over from close range, but Gary O’Neil’s side still have a good chance of avoiding a quick return to the Championship with games against Crystal Palace, Manchester United and Everton to come.
They are currently nine points clear of the bottom three, although some teams still have four matches to play.
With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Raheem Sterling among five players left out from the side that had lost 3-1 at Arsenal in their previous outing, Chelsea were much improved with 21-year-old Noni Madueke a particular threat on the right-hand side.
Lampard had opted to bring in Gallagher as well as Badiashile, Trevoh Chalobah, Mykhailo Mudryk and Kai Havertz, and he said shaping a side from a large squad after a poor run has been difficult.
“There are a few players finding their feet,” Lampard said.
“Typically at Chelsea, one or two have fed into the group and now we have more. It’s understandable that as a group finding rhythm and confidence can be difficult.
“This is a first step, it won’t be plain sailing but there is talent there and the players need to come together to get us to where we want to be.
“We came in off the back of a tough run, it’s been a tough year and there is a lot work to do. But the performance and the result in isolation are really good, we deserved to win the game. It’s a nice step forward for the lads.”
Relief for Lampard but more big tests await Chelsea
Chelsea’s recent record made for grim reading, with defeats to Real Madrid in both legs of their Champions League quarter-final to go alongside the losses in the league and just two goals scored in those six outings under Lampard.
But Lampard’s tweaks to the side that had gone 3-0 behind after just 34 minutes against Arsenal paid off, with Gallagher looking lively throughout after his deft, glancing header diverted N’Golo Kante’s fine cross from the right in the ninth minute.
Madueke found the side netting in the first half, as well as posing problems for Bournemouth when cutting inside from the left with some fine runs.
Badiashile, another of Lampard’s changes from midweek, also impressed in giving Chelsea a much more solid feel at the back and he thoroughly deserved his first goal since his arrival from Monaco in January with a poke from close range to Hatem Ziyech’s free-kick.
Felix finished off a cute exchange of passes with Sterling, on as a substitute in the second half, to give a comfortable-looking gloss to the scoreline.
But even after the relief of his first win, Lampard knows he still faces a tricky end to the season.
Chelsea face relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest next, before a daunting final trio of games against clubs currently in the positions Chelsea fans would expect to be contesting: Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle United.
Cherries miss chance to secure Premier League status
Thomas Tuchel was still Chelsea’s manager when Gary O’Neil replaced Scott Parker in late August in the wake of the Cherries’ disastrous 9-0 loss at Liverpool, but while the German lasted only just over a week more, O’Neil has repaid the faith shown in him despite some dips in form since his appointment.
A run of six wins in nine games prior to Chelsea’s visit has lifted Bournemouth from the very foot of the table in early March to the cusp of safety, and even this defeat still leaves them nine points clear of Leicester, Leeds and Forest below them.
Astute business in January has been key to their revival under O’Neil with Vina, on loan from AS Roma, grabbing his second goal inside a month after an excellent move that also involved the impressive Ryan Christie.
Cutting in from the left and quickly exchanging passes with Christie and Dominic Solanke, Vina then opened up his body and curled the ball high past Kepa Arrizabalaga for a brilliant equaliser.
Vina should arguably have had another in the second half, but Kepa was equal to the Uruguay international’s near-post shot to his right.
Ouattara, who had also arrived in January on a permanent deal from Lorient, should have hit the target with his header from inside the six-yard area and the impressive Burkina Faso midfielder’s miss proved vital when Chelsea subsequently stretched away.
Player of the match
João FélixJoão Félix
AFC Bournemouth
Squad number29Player nameBilling
Squad number18Player nameViña
Squad number8Player nameLerma
Squad number9Player nameSolanke
Squad number11Player nameOuattara
Squad number14Player nameRothwell
Squad number5Player nameKelly
Squad number25Player nameSenesi
Squad number15Player nameA Smith
Squad number13Player nameNeto
Squad number4Player nameL Cook
Squad number10Player nameChristie
Squad number24Player nameSemenyo
Squad number7Player nameBrooks
Squad number32Player nameAnthony
Chelsea
Squad number11Player nameJoão Félix
Squad number23Player nameGallagher
Squad number22Player nameZiyech
Squad number7Player nameKanté
Squad number31Player nameMadueke
Squad number28Player nameAzpilicueta
Squad number6Player nameThiago Silva
Squad number4Player nameBadiashile
Squad number12Player nameLoftus-Cheek
Squad number5Player nameFernández
Squad number21Player nameChilwell
Squad number17Player nameSterling
Squad number15Player nameMudryk
Squad number14Player nameChalobah
Squad number29Player nameHavertz
Squad number1Player nameArrizabalaga
Line-ups
Bournemouth
Formation 4-2-3-1
13Neto
15A Smith25Senesi5Kelly18Viña
14Rothwell8Lerma
11Ouattara29Billing10Christie
9Solanke
13Neto
15A Smith
25SenesiBooked at 45mins
5Kelly
18Viña
14RothwellSubstituted forL Cookat 59′minutes
8Lerma
11Ouattara
29BillingSubstituted forAnthonyat 83′minutes
10ChristieSubstituted forSemenyoat 84′minutes
9SolankeSubstituted forBrooksat 90′minutes
Substitutes
1Travers
3Stephens
4L Cook
6Mepham
7Brooks
17Stacey
24Semenyo
27Zabarnyi
32Anthony
Chelsea
Formation 4-3-3
1Arrizabalaga
14Chalobah6Thiago Silva4Badiashile21Chilwell
7Kanté5Fernández23Gallagher
31Madueke29Havertz15Mudryk
1Arrizabalaga
14Chalobah
6Thiago Silva
4BadiashileBooked at 65mins
21ChilwellSubstituted forAzpilicuetaat 75′minutes
7KantéBooked at 20minsSubstituted forLoftus-Cheekat 63′minutes
5Fernández
23Gallagher
31MaduekeSubstituted forZiyechat 76′minutes
29HavertzSubstituted forJoão Félixat 84′minutes
15MudrykBooked at 15minsSubstituted forSterlingat 63′minutes
Attempt missed. César Azpilicueta (Chelsea) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left.
Substitution, Bournemouth. David Brooks replaces Dominic Solanke.
Foul by Raheem Sterling (Chelsea).
Marcos Senesi (Bournemouth) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Goal! Bournemouth 1, Chelsea 3. João Félix (Chelsea) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Raheem Sterling.
Attempt saved. Jaidon Anthony (Bournemouth) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Antoine Semenyo.
Substitution, Bournemouth. Antoine Semenyo replaces Ryan Christie.
Substitution, Chelsea. João Félix replaces Kai Havertz.
Substitution, Bournemouth. Jaidon Anthony replaces Philip Billing.
Goal! Bournemouth 1, Chelsea 2. Benoît Badiashile (Chelsea) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Hakim Ziyech with a cross following a set piece situation.
Hand ball by Dominic Solanke (Bournemouth).
Attempt blocked. Enzo Fernández (Chelsea) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Conor Gallagher.
Attempt missed. Dango Ouattara (Bournemouth) header from very close range is just a bit too high. Assisted by Jefferson Lerma with a headed pass following a corner.
Corner, Bournemouth. Conceded by Trevoh Chalobah.
Foul by Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Chelsea).
Philip Billing (Bournemouth) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Attempt missed. Kai Havertz (Chelsea) header from the centre of the box misses to the left.
Substitution, Chelsea. Hakim Ziyech replaces Noni Madueke.
Manchester United will turn to Thomas Tuchel if the club decide to sack manager Erik ten Hag, while Real Madrid are interested in Aston Villa’s Jhon Duran.
Manchester United will revive talks with former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel if they sack Ten Hag. (ipaper), external
United’s hierarchy will meet on Tuesday to discuss the club’s plight after co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe watches them play Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday. (Athletic – subscription required), external
Inter Milan boss Simone Inzaghi has rejected an offer to succeed Ten Hag at Old Trafford (Sportitalia – in Italian), external
Former Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen says he would be open to a return if Ruud van Nistelrooy, currently assistant manager at the club, was to become manager. (No Tippy Tappy Football Podcast, via Mirror), external
Real Madrid are closely monitoring Aston Villa’s 20-year-old Colombia striker Jhon Duran. (Football Insider), external
Arsenal are interested in Barcelona’s 18-year-old Spain Under-19 forward Arnau Pradas. (Mundo Deportivo – in Spanish), external
Manchester City have discussed Crystal Palace’s England midfielder Adam Wharton, 20, as a replacement for the injured Rodri. (Football Insider), external
Everton will attempt to revive new contract talks with England striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, 27, if the proposed takeover by the Friedkin Group is approved. (ipaper), external
Liverpool are keen on signing England forward Eberechi Eze, 26, from Crystal Palace. (Football Insider), external
Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are both plotting a move for Arsenal’s Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey, 31. (Fichajes, via TeamTalk), external
Robertson initially ruled out Celtic’s second goal in their 6-0 win at McDiarmid Park after an offside flag, but the panel agreed that VAR was right to intervene while noting that it was “a very tight decision and would have been difficult for the assistant referee” to see.
The panel made the same observation when concluding that VAR was correct to intervene after Rangers’ winning goal at home to Hibs, scored by midfielder Tom Lawrence, was initially ruled out for offside.
VAR later intervened to advise referee Nick Walsh that Hibs should have been awarded a penalty when John Souttar blocked striker Mykola Kuharevich’s shot from within the six-yard box with his arm.
In deciding that VAR was right to intervene, the panel also noted that Walsh was correct not to show a red card to Rangers’ centre-half because he was not denying an obvious goal due to the position of goalkeeper Jack Butland, who would go on to save Kuharevich’s spot kick.
Dundee United midfielder Craig Sibbald’s 79th-minute long-range strike, which pulled his side to within a goal of Kilmarnock at Ruby Park, was initially ruled out by referee Craig Napier for a foul in the build-up.
A statement from global players’ union Fifpro called the judgement “a major ruling” which it said “will change the landscape of football”, but added it would communicate further after “analysing the ruling in depth”.
Diarra’s lawyers called it a “total victory” and claimed any players impacted by a similar situation could claim compensation. They said the ruling would “speed up the modernisation of governance” at Fifa.
Fifa said it would “analyse the decision in co-ordination with other stakeholders before commenting further”.
Emilio Garcia, Fifa’s chief legal and compliance officer, later said: “It is important to clarify that today’s decision does not change the core principles of the transfer system at all.
“Fifa has been continuously improving that system for many years – not for its own benefit, but for the benefit of players, clubs, leagues and member associations, to ensure that players can train, be developed and have stability, while safeguarding the integrity of competitions by implementing a robust regulatory framework for the international transfer system.”
In essence, the court has determined that players should have more power to move and work where they wish, and that Fifa rules should be less restrictive.
The court’s view is that a player whose contract has been terminated, as in Diarra’s case, should be able to go and play in a different country without either the player or the new club being automatically required to pay significant compensation to the former club.
This gives greater power to players and their agents in the transfer market.
“The result could mean far-reaching consequences for the transfer system, similar to how the Bosman Ruling affected transfers in 1995,” sports barrister Yasin Patel told BBC Sport.
“Players may now be able to move more freely to other clubs by breaking with a contract as opposed to being tied to the club and contract. In addition, buying clubs may not have to pay compensation or claims.”
Sports finance expert Kieran Maguire warned that could lead to “unscrupulous people” effectively “gaming the system” by downing tools to seek a move.
“This could be something which could be exploited in the future,” he told Radio 5 Live.
“What’s prevented players from doing it in the past is if they move on elsewhere, the club that they join would have to pay a compensation fee as a form of transfer fee. This ruling says that I can now move to another club and no compensation is due.
“It has to be said the vast majority of footballers don’t want this to be the case – we all know people that push things at work in terms of dismissals and so on – but as far as the players are concerned this is a broader issue that he wasn’t able to be a professional footballer when he should have been earning money.
Maheta Molango, chief executive officer of the Professional Footballers’ Association, said it was an “important ruling which could have potentially far-reaching ramifications for the rights of players within the current transfer system”.
He added: “More widely, it demonstrates again that football cannot behave like it does not have to work within the same employment laws that apply to any other industry.”
The exact ramifications of the judgement will be made clear once Fifa puts forward its new regulations.
Paul Pogba’s four-year ban for a doping offence has been reduced to 18 months after winning his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).
Sources close to the 31-year-old Juventus midfielder told BBC Sport he can resume training in January 2025 and will be eligible to play again from March.
France international Pogba was suspended by Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal (Nado) in February after a drugs test found elevated levels of testosterone – a hormone that increases endurance – in his system.
Cas director general Matthieu Reeb confirmed to Reuters the ban had been reduced to 18 months from 11 September, 2023.
Former Manchester United midfielder Pogba took his case to Cas and gave evidence in person at a hearing earlier this summer.
He previously said he would “never knowingly or deliberately” dope and believed the verdict was “incorrect”.
Had the original ban stood, 2018 World Cup winner Pogba would have been unable to play until 2027, when he will be 34.
Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall has criticised the “amateurish behaviour” in handling fixture scheduling after a Women’s Super League match was postponed at a week’s notice.
Chelsea’s WSL game against Manchester United has been called off because of a conflict with the Blues’ European schedule.
The new company which now runs the Women’s Super League, The Women’s Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL), said the cancellation was in order to prioritise player welfare.
The Women’s Champions League draw was made last Friday and Chelsea’s opening group game at home to Real Madrid was scheduled for just two days after the United game – on Tuesday, 8 October.
Before the Champions League draw was made, WPLL had asked Uefa not to schedule any of the three English teams to play on 8 October, but were unsuccessful.
Eidevall said the situation could have been avoided if Women’s Super League games involving teams in the Champions League were scheduled for Friday or Saturday to avoid a potential 48-hour turnaround,but all three English clubs involved are believed to have requested to play on the Sunday.
“Out of the 16 teams, 13 were scheduled to play on the Friday or Saturday and the three English teams were all scheduled to play on the Sunday,” he said.
“We have a league organisation that doesn’t act proactively on these matters. It is damaging for the fans. It is simply not good enough from the league.
“Do the league want English teams to be successful at European level? I would hope the answer to that would be yes, but the actions show differently. It shows that this is not one of their priorities.”
Amandine Miquel is used to developing young talent and she is eager to do the same with Leicester City.
The Frenchwoman was appointed the club’s manager in July after seven seasons with Reims in her native France.
A 1-1 draw with Bristol City in the Women’s League Cup on Wednesday gave her an opportunity to test the club’s brightest young talent and it is clear she is pleased with what she saw.
Among them was 19-year-old winger Shana Chossenotte, who got on the scoresheet, as well as highly rated England youth international Ruby Mace, 21.
“Four or five from the academy could definitely start for the first team,” said Miquel, when asked on Friday about the squad depth she has available at Leicester.
On the same day, four of the club’s youngsters were called up to England’s Under-17 Women’s World Cup squad, with the tournament taking place this month.
Miquel will be without goalkeeper Rebekah Dowsett, defenders Nelly Las and Simone Sherwood, as well as forward Denny Draper.
But while Miquel is sad to lose them for a month, she is excited to see the talent pool being created within the club’s academy.
“It’s very good. I’m happy to share with England and wish that they go as far as they can in that competition,” added Miquel.
“For me, [developing young players is] the most important thing. I was a bit surprised when I saw the age of my team here, but I saw that I still have the youngest squad out of the 12 [WSL] clubs.
“I think that bigger teams, or ones higher up the table, tend to forget that they need to play. If you want to have a very good player at 18 or 19, she has to start playing at this level at 16. She should be around the team much more.
“We have four or five that can be in this group. When there are opportunities like this [in the League Cup], we will use them.”
“You can’t just turn the tap off and say, ‘right, you become super defensive’. It’s not how we play. What do we do? Sit back, have 15% of the ball and probably lose 3-0, 4-0?”
Rodgers would prefer to “play as you play” and learn from mistakes rather than “play five at the back”.
“I’d much rather do that and go down with my own vision,” he said. “I respect the opinion, but I don’t listen to it. Never have.”
Rodgers does not consider himself “a dreamer” regarding Celtic’s chances of being competitive in the Champions League, with games still to come against Atalanta, Leipzig, Bruges, Dinamo Zagreb, Young Boys and Aston Villa.
“We will be judged in January when the eight games are finished and we’ll see where the points total takes us,” he added.
“I believe in the group of players, how they’ve been working. It was a sore one the other night. I know we will bounce back to a stronger position, because we will learn from it.
“I’m not daft. I hear all the words. ‘Pragmatism’ and all this stuff, whatever else gets thrown at teams that want to play. We don’t play that way to lose, we play it to win, and we also know there are certain games and opponents you have to adjust.”
“I really don’t think that because we are not ready. The reason is that City has worked with the same manager for nine years and Arsenal for five years. If you want to compete for big things you need that time.
“After Arsenal beat PSG they asked Luis Enrique and he said the same thing that Arsenal have had the same manager for five years and them only a year and a half.
“Imagine us, only three months… so it’s a huge difference. So I am really convinced we cannot compete with those clubs.”
Chelsea are home to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday (14:00 BST).
They have spent £1.5bn across the last five transfer windows, albeit with significant player sales, and currently only have Carney Chukwuemeka (ill) and Reece James (hamstring) on the sidelines.
Maresca wants time and patience in his first year of management at Stamford Bridge, with the Blues entering the third year of their ownership under Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
He added: “The target is to improve and slowly, slowly to get closer to those clubs but at the moment we are not ready for that,” he added.