Palmer stars as Chelsea edge Fulham 3-2 in thrilling London derby

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Cole Palmer starred as Chelsea began their Premier League campaign with a 3-2 victory over Fulham in a thrilling West London derby on Sunday.

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The victory handed new Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso a winning start to his Premier League reign and made him only the third of the club’s last nine managers to win their opening league game.

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The defeat was Arbeloa’s first Premier League match in charge of Fulham, with both managers making their league debuts for their respective clubs.

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Chelsea needed just 31 seconds to take the lead, with João Pedro producing a composed finish after Palmer picked him out.

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Levi Colwill sent a Fulham clearance back into the danger area before Palmer fed Pedro, who delicately lifted the ball over goalkeeper Bernd Leno.

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The goal was the earliest scored by a team in its opening game of a Premier League season.

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Palmer almost doubled Chelsea’s advantage shortly afterwards but saw his effort saved by Leno, while Fulham grew into the game as both defences showed signs of uncertainty.

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Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sánchez was particularly shaky and was beaten in the 23rd minute when Josh King’s low effort flew inside his near post to restore parity.

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Fulham then took control of the contest, with Josh Acheampong producing a crucial block to deny summer signing Gonzalo García a debut goal.

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Chelsea regained momentum before half-time, however, with Pedro going close with a volley before Leno denied Roméo Lavia from close range.

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The hosts restored their lead four minutes before the interval when two of their summer recruits combined.

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Maxence Lacroix cut the ball back for Morgan Rogers, who fired a low effort past Leno to make it 2-1.

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Palmer then extended Chelsea’s advantage four minutes after the restart.

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Pedro released the England international behind the Fulham defence and Palmer calmly finished through Leno’s legs to put Chelsea 3-1 ahead.

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Fulham responded almost immediately, reducing the deficit five minutes later.

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Sánchez parried Timothy Castagne’s effort into the path of García, who headed the rebound onto the crossbar and into the net.

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The goal continued García’s impressive record of scoring all seven of his career league goals at home.

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Fulham pushed for an equaliser, with King going close again 18 minutes from time when his low effort narrowly missed the post.

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Antonee Robinson also came close after attempting to lob Sánchez, but his effort bounced wide as Chelsea held on.

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Pedro had a stoppage-time goal ruled out for offside, but Chelsea secured their first opening-day victory since 2022.

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The result also extended Chelsea’s impressive record at Craven Cottage, with the Blues claiming their seventh win in their last nine visits to Fulham’s home ground, alongside two defeats.

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Fulham, meanwhile, suffered their fourth consecutive defeat in Premier League season-opening London derbies.

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