Tammy Abraham's Big-Game Showings Mean Timo Werner Will Have to Bide His Time

West Ham at home was never going to be easy for Chelsea. Their London rivals came in just a point behind them in the Premier League standings, having won four of their last six and boasting one of the best defensive records in the division.

3-0 didn't look on the cards before the game. It might have looked on the cards shortly after Thiago Silva's headed opener, but for the most part, this was an encounter the Irons were well and truly in.

In games like these, you need someone to step up with the incisive touch to put it beyond doubt. And while Chelsea have no shortage of players you might expect to provide that, be it Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Hakim Ziyech or even the in-form Olivier Giroud, it continues to be Tammy Abraham with his foot on the clutch.

The England striker came up with the second goal at Newcastle towards the end of November and it was the 23-year-old who was on hand with the decisive touch here, nudging Werner's messy effort past Lukasz Fabianski to deflate David Moyes' side on the spot.

It had been a fairly anonymous performance to this point but the goal acted like an adrenaline shot. Within minutes, he was on hand to power in a header, sending his side home happy with a lead that flattered them after a functional, if not quite inspiring performance.

He took his Premier League tally for the season to five and while those numbers aren't exactly frightening at the 14-game mark, you could make the case that each and every one of them has been key. He finished off a remarkable comeback at West Brom earlier in the season and a few weeks later he started one against Sheffield United, sweeping home to cancel out David McGoldrick's opener.

He may have lacked consistency this season and some would tell you it should be Werner who starts through the middle. Yet here the German showed just why Lampard prefers Abraham in the nine role - he spurned two great chances and was perhaps fortunate a third fell into the path of his teammate to put the game out of reach.

It would be hard to blame Werner for growing frustrated as he tries in vain to impact games from the left flank, but as long as Abraham keeps providing the magic when Chelsea absolutely need it, then his wait may just have to continue.

Ultimately it was a performance in which Chelsea, and for long spells Abraham, flattered to deceive. While the scoreline and the stats may suggest dominance, Frank Lampard will be stressing the room for improvement when he debriefs his players.

He will be encouraged that his side were able to find another gear to kick into as the endgame loomed, however, and will be even happier that it was his pick to lead the line who showed his teammates how it was done.