Romelu Lukaku's return proved a welcome boost for Chelsea as they cruised to a 3-1 win against Aston Villa in the Premier League.The Belgian, who hadn't played since December 11 owing to a positive Covid-19 test, scored and won the game-clinching penalty as Thomas Tuchel's side secured a valuable win at Villa Park.The Blues have fallen behind in the title race thanks to a patchy run of form in December that has included draws against Everton and Wolves and defeat to West Ham.
Chelsea secure crucial win
So picking up three points at Villa Park was vitally important, especially after Manchester City’s 6-3 win over Leicester City earlier in the day.
Things didn't get off to a great start, though. Reece James gifted Villa a 1-0 lead in the 28th minute when he headed the ball into his own net.
Jorginho swiftly evened the scores from the penalty spot and Lukaku, introduced at half-time, then turned the game on its head.
Lukaku's unstoppable run
The striker, a summer signing from Inter Milan, converted Callum Hudson-Odoi's cross with a fine header to give Chelsea the lead.
And he helped seal the win with a world-class run that resulted in Ezri Konsa bringing him down inside the box.
Jorginho scored the resulting penalty for his second of the match, but he owed a huge thanks to Lukaku for winning the spot-kick.
That's the Lukaku we saw at Inter Milan last season. Poor Matt Targett - Lukaku sent him flying.
His teammate Ben Chilwell summed it up perfectly on Twitter.
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