Abraham bags treble but Werner misfires

LONDON • Chelsea were expected to make short work of Luton at home despite their unconvincing form and did not disappoint by reaching the fifth round of the FA Cup in 21 of the last 23 seasons.

The Blues recorded just their fourth victory in 11 games in all competitions, running out 3-1 winners over their second-tier opponents yesterday.

Tammy Abraham grabbed a hat-trick to book his side's place in the FA Cup fifth round away to Championship outfit Barnsley on Feb 10.

The Chelsea academy graduate became the first English player to net a treble for Chelsea in the competition since Frank Lampard, his current manager, did so in 2007.

The hosts took the lead in the 11th minute when a quick throw-in caught Luton's defence napping, allowing Timo Werner to cut the ball back for Abraham who fired a low shot past goalkeeper Simon Sluga.

The England striker doubled their lead six minutes later with a header from Reece James' cross.

Luton pulled one back on the half-hour mark when Kepa Arrizabalaga, the world's most expensive goalkeeper at £71.6 million (S$130.1 million), failed to keep out Jordan Clark's low effort. It was yet another mistake by the Spaniard, who has lost his No. 1 position to summer arrival Edouard Mendy and whose 58.8 save percentage in the Premier League ranks as the lowest of any stopper with 20 or more appearances in this period.

However, Chelsea's second-half dominance enabled Abraham to get his third with a simple tap-in via a nice ball into the box by substitute Callum Hudson-Odoi.

Chelsea's campaign will not be judged on advancing past lower-ranked opponents, but rather how well they do in the league, with the pressure building after a £200 million-plus outlay in the last transfer window.

Lampard's men are ninth in the top flight and they need the likes of Werner, another big-money buy, to rediscover their form in order to climb up the table.

The Blues boss will be concerned after the Germany international misfired in front of goal again at Stamford Bridge.

Since October 2018, Werner had scored eight consecutive penalties for RB Leipzig but when handed the opportunity to make it 4-1, he fluffed his lines from the spot.

On the striker, who was one of Europe's most sought-after players before his move to Chelsea but has now scored one goal in his last 15 appearances, Lampard admitted he was gutted with the miss.

"I'm disappointed for him. He gave a lot with his performance and it's just one of those things when things are quite not going for you," he said.

Still, there were some positives to be taken away from the game, including getting his critics off his back, albeit momentarily.

While the game was held behind closed doors, there was a banner of encouragement in the stands from a Chelsea fan group, which Lampard said he was grateful for.

"I knew about the banner a week or two ago directly from the people who put it together," he said.

"They're obviously huge supporters of this club and it was very appreciated. One thing I know when I'm at the Bridge, I'm at the club I love and have always had huge support as a player and as a manager.

"It's a competition we've had success with and the expectation is we go through. We had to get the game right and we did. It's important everybody fights in the right direction. That's the only way we can be successful as a football club. We did that today."

REUTERS