Kai Havertz was at the double for Chelsea to strengthen our place in the top four and take the Blues one step closer to confirming Champions League qualification for next season.

Meanwhile, another successful shutout down the other end made it 18 league clean sheets in 2020/21, a tally only Manchester City can match.

Tale of the turnovers

While the final scoreline and overall performance reflected an uneventful evening for Thomas Tuchel’s side at Stamford Bridge, Fulham’s bright start in the opening 20 minutes had set a slightly different tone.

The visitors were energetic and on the front foot, pressing the ball high and often winning turnovers in the final third. Yet Chelsea proved more effective in stealing possession from their opponents in defensive or deeper midfield positions, channelling much of our attacking intent through central areas.

Instead of the usual 3-4-3 shape, our setup was more like the 3-5-2 used in Madrid in midweek, with Billy Gilmour sitting in the midfield six position and Timo Werner up alongside Kai Havertz in attack.

That allowed Mason Mount and Hakim Ziyech to operate in more central attacking midfield areas, though all four of our front players ended up working in close proximity, as their average positions above indicates.

Werner was the highest of the forwards, stretching Fulham with his lightning-quick runs in behind, while even Mount roamed into more advanced areas than was expected when the teamsheets were submitted.

This was clear to see in the first goal as the England midfielder burst forward to make a clever run behind defenders before bringing the ball under control in spell-binding fashion and then teeing up Havertz to break the deadlock.

The vast majority (89 per cent) of Chelsea’s shots also came from the middle zone of the pitch, indicating our success at penetrating the Cottagers straight through the front door.

Hungry Havertz takes his chances

It has been common this campaign for the Blues to bemoan spurned chances and not scoring more goals from the opportunities created and dominance on display. Yet this was a game in which we outperformed our xG of 1.8, and that owed much to Havertz’s clinical finishing in the 18-yard box.

The young German is becoming a real handful as a central striker, shrugging off the ‘false’ prefix to his number nine work. He scored with both shots on target and created another decent opportunity late on for Reece James, demonstrating the close control and slick passing that has been the hallmark of his fledgling career.

Both goals were created by moments of brilliance, first by Mount and then by Werner, but Havertz’s composure and class in front of goal was evident. He might have had a hat-trick but for a first-half effort ruled out for offside and his general centre-forward play was a source of satisfaction for Tuchel and those Chelsea supporters watching on.

As was Werner’s overall contribution. Despite the narratives, there may be some misconception about the striker’s first season in England. In this match, he had more shots than anyone on the pitch (three) and more key passes than any other Chelsea player. He might have had another assist when unselfishly teeing up Hakim Ziyech but for an excellent save from Alphonse Areola.

His assist that did count, a perfect pass of precision and weight in between defenders for Havertz’s second, took him to double figures for both goals assists this term. He is the first player to achieve that in a debut season at Chelsea since Eden Hazard eight years ago.

Exceptional Edou

Some of our clean sheets under Tuchel over the past three months have been the result of flawless defensive displays and opposing teams barely fashioning a single chance against us.

This latest effort, however, required alert and elite goalkeeping from Edouard Mendy, the Senegalese stopper making three impressive saves to keep Scott Parker’s men at bay.

Fulham had 10 shots to our nine, three of which were on target and needed pushing over the bar or away from danger. The pick of the bunch came late in the first half with the score at 1-0 as Mendy reacted brilliantly to keep out Ola Aina’s deflected shot from the edge of the box.

The 29-year-old now has 16 Premier League clean sheets in 28 appearances, having conceded just 22 in that time. Since Tuchel took charge, he has 13 clean sheets in 18 matches in all competitions. Only Manchester City’s Ederson has more in the league (18) – could there be a late race for the Golden Glove in the offing?