Chelsea tighten title grip after Diego Costa scores twice against Southampton

Normal service has been resumed. Chelsea checked the recent hint of a stagger and rediscovered the relentless, ruthless style which will surely yield them the Premier League title. Victory over an awkward Southampton side re-established a seven-point advantage at the top and steeled the leaders for the run-in. The pressure has been transferred to those closest in the pursuit. Over to you, Tottenham Hotspur. Eden Hazard clinches semi-final thriller for Chelsea against Tottenham Read more Antonio Conte wore a scowl for much of this match, pounding his technical area as ever and kicking everything from water bottles to kit bags in agitation whenever his players’ concentration lapsed, or at least until Diego Costa’s second half double had him skipping in delight on the touchline. Four wins from their final five fixtures will be enough to secure the title. It is hard to see them dropping another point at home, leaving the trips to Everton on Sunday and West Bromwich Albion on 12 May as their most daunting hurdles. Yet that is all supposing Spurs are faultless in the month ahead, and that ambition will be tested severely by Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Wednesday, a game which will draw the attention of Chelsea’s players. Regardless, Conte’s team do not appear in any mood to let the title slip away. Results as striking as this send out a message that must sap the hope from the rest. This had always seemed like an opportunity the leaders would not let slip. Chelsea have grown used to kicking off after Tottenham of late, the schedule generating its own pressure given the relentless nature of Spurs’ recent league form. Chelsea’s uncharacteristically sloppy display at Manchester United in their previous league match had felt all the more damaging in the context of the drubbing Mauricio Pochettino’s side had handed Bournemouth in that weekend’s opening fixture more than 24 hours earlier. Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final success may have lanced some tension, but Conte had spent almost three days drumming into his players the importance of beating Southampton and re-establishing that lead at the top. They could steal a march on their closest rivals here. Advertisement Not that this was to be straightforward. For all that Chelsea’s initial response had threatened to be emphatic, there was a legginess to the hosts at times which was exposed by a team who had enjoyed a free weekend. Sofiane Boufal and Dusan Tadic were slippery on the visitors’ flanks, ever eager to counter-attack, with James Ward-Prowse’s set-piece delivery unnerving a side who have now gone 11 Premier League games without a clean sheet. Chelsea may boast a considerable attacking threat, particularly with Eden Hazard in this form, but the defensive solidity of the late autumn has been eroded. It was a former Chelsea player, Oriol Romeu, who pierced them midway through the first period, cancelling out Hazard’s wonderfully taken opener, as the home side strove in vain to repel Ward-Prowse’s corner. Nemanja Matic’s inadvertent flick had set the defenders on their heels, with Manolo Gabbiadini given time to collect and turn inside before poking the loose ball back across goal. Thibaut Courtois’ touch presented it to Romeu, who simply could not miss.