Chelsea may have lifted the pressure off Jose Mourinho with a victory over Aston Villa albeit unconvincingly.
The match opened favourably for Mourinho’s side after Diego Costa got a close-range finish from Willian’s pass.
Again, the Brazilian was involved again after the break, as his strike deflected off Alan Hutton and looped into the net to seal the points for the Blues.
Diego Costa’s tap-in and an Alan Hutton own goal gave Chelsea its first win in four matches on Saturday as the Premier League champion beat Aston Villa 2-0 at Stamford Bridge.
Both sides came into the clash out of form and separated by just four points in the lower reaches of the table but Costa – returning from a suspension for his antics against Arsenal last month – proved key as goals in each half got Jose Mourinho’s men back on track after a poor run of results.
Mourinho was charged by the Football Association in midweek for his outburst after the 3-1 defeat to Southampton and dropped the likes of Eden Hazard, Gary Cahill and Oscar to the bench from that loss.
While the changes made little difference early on as Villa edged the opening stages, Costa benefited from a defensive mix-up between Brad Guzan and Joleon Lescott 10 minutes before halftime.
Villa – winless in the league since opening day – offered signs that it could get back into the game but was out of luck for Chelsea’s second as Costa’s shot looped past Guzan off the unlucky Hutton.
While Chelsea continued to look off its best, Mourinho’s side ended its winless run ahead of a tricky midweek trip to face Dinamo Kiev in the Champions League, while Villa’s fifth consecutive Premier League defeat will keep the pressure on Tim Sherwood as his men remain in the bottom three.