Chelsea returns to the top four after defeating the Saints.

Chelsea defeated Southampton 4-0 at Stamford Bridge to earn a much-needed victory and move up to fourth place in the Premier League after a three-game losing streak.

After a tense start against the league's bottom team on a night when a tiny group of supporters demonstrated against the club's ownership prior to the game, goals in the first half from Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto, and Levi Colwill calmed Stamford Bridge.

Following that, Chelsea never looked back as Marc Cucurella added a fourth goal, assisted by Tyrique George, an academy graduate, off the bench. Enzo Maresca had a nearly ideal night as his team's results elsewhere in the Champions League qualifying battle went as planned.

In addition to moving one point out of third place, where fifth place is presently sufficient to qualify for the Champions League, Chelsea also gained momentum on Tuesday night as two of its opponents, Bournemouth and Aston Villa, were defeated.

Cole Palmer's inability to score goals is a persistent worry, though, as the Chelsea talisman has missed two fantastic first-half opportunities and is now without a goal in seven games in all competitions and an assist in fourteen. There seems to be a problem with confidence.

With 11 games remaining, Southampton has the serious risk of being the worst team in Premier League history, surpassing Derby. It will be difficult going by this effort, but they need three points to avoid breaking the previous record for the fewest points.

Palmer is in a slump, according to analysis.
The way Chelsea crushed Southampton gave several of Maresca's struggling players the opportunity to regain their self-confidence. Palmer was not like that, however.

Palmer finds himself in a slump for the first time in his career. Furthermore, he is still unsure about how to escape it.

Nor was it for the sake of trying. Palmer had more shots than any other player on the pitch against Southampton, with seven. For him, nothing was quite falling.

Prior to this game, Palmer's underlying metrics indicated that the issue wasn't only with him. In the 13 games before this one, no player in the league had generated as many opportunities as he did.

However, the encounter on Tuesday night exposed a player lacking confidence. Palmer had two clear chances denied, but it's easy to forget because it was just a few seconds before Chelsea's first two scores.

Half the goal was open for Palmer to score, but Aaron Ramsdale stopped the first one. Then, when played in down the right, he appeared to be undecided about shooting and passing.

Palmer's bank account has more than enough credit to handle this run. It is the first setback in his dazzling first 18 months as a consistent starter in senior football, during which he has hardly made a mistake.

Maresca is confident that this moment will soon come to an end. After the game, the Chelsea manager remarked, "All the big players go through bad moments where they struggle to score."

Cole is thrilled right now even though he finds it difficult to score or act morally. He is aware that this is typical.

"Cole spent time in a large club with elite players and is aware other players have similar situations, therefore it is fortunate. He's giggling and responding perfectly. He must be a football fan.

However, Chelsea will face more difficult challenges in the future, and if they want to be a real contender for Champions League qualification, they will need their star player to climb out of this rut.

Maresca: Even though we are at our lowest point, we are still fourth
Enzo Maresca, the head coach of Chelsea, said during his press conference following the game:

"Very significant [victory] because we know that every game is going to be crucial from now on, and it becomes even more crucial when we score three points.

"We are pleased to know that going forward, we will be present when we win a game; if we lose, we will suffer a slight setback.

"It's how we control our emotions till the very end, but we are definitely pleased with the performance.

"Even though I thought the performance against Villa was excellent, we were still thrilled tonight even if we lost.

"Our results are at their worst right now, yet we are only one point below third place in fourth place. That is significant and demonstrates our strong play in the first half of the season.

"Now it's just a matter of trying to finish in the best way"

Juric is unconcerned with his future.

Ivan Juric, manager of Southampton, during his press conference following the game:

"I thought the first twenty-five to thirty minutes were excellent. We were really competitive with Paul [Onuachu], and we had two excellent opportunities.

"It was incredibly tough after we let up the first and third goals in a single transition, as well as the set-piece goal. 3-0 versus Chelsea is a lot, so it was nearly over in the first half, but I believe the boys gave it their all at this particular moment, and that's all.

Regarding giving up first despite having a strong start: "I'm annoyed by the circumstances. It's not simple. Everyone is going through an extremely difficult time, including the players and the team.

However, energy for the future is required. Use all of these bad experiences to build up your energy and then aim for greater performance in the future.

"No, everything is possible," he said when asked if he is concerned about his future. Naturally, it is up to the club to decide what they choose to accomplish.