Chelsea 3-0 Watford: The one where an American starred on the Fourth of July

Olivier Giroud: Like a fine wine

After Wednesday's shocking performance against West Ham, Chelsea managed to bounce back with aplomb against another relegation battler Watford.

Frank Lampard dropped Marcos Alonso, Antonio Rudiger and Tammy Abraham for the part they played in letting Man United close the gap on fourth to just two points. While Rudiger definitely made two prolific mistakes in that match, he remains more consistent overall than his partner Andreas Christensen. I'm not saying the Dane has blackmail material over the boss. But I'm not not saying it.

When asked about the difficulty Chelsea find themselves in at defending set-pieces, Lampard cited an issue with the overall height of the team. Bringing Kurt Zouma and Olivier Giroud back into the team addressed the vertically challenged side.

Giroud was not just re-instated as eye-candy or to be a physical presence in the box. The man has an eye for goal. Following a ridiculous and incisive pass from Mason Mount through to Ross Barkley. Barkley found the big Frenchman and it was 1-0 to the good.

There's a lot of positives about Tammy Abraham, but at the moment he doesn't bring enough to the team overall. Chelsea have to set up differently for both forwards and while Abraham is the way forward as Lampard sees it for quick movement, the side always seem to look better with Giroud leading the line. The move the ball around quickly and look confident when firing in crosses that someone will move heaven and earth to try and meet it.

Only one way to stop Captain America

The Frenchman also comes in handy in Chelsea's own 18-yard box. His positioning and ability to read the game is on point. And he uses his physicality well at both ends of the pitch. His defensive work is often reminiscent of when Didier Drogba commanded the pitch.

Christian Pulisic continued to wreak havoc against the opposition. He was the one bright spark against West Ham and has been Chelsea's star since the restart. No one can handle his pace or clever runs. Which means one thing -- penalty magnet.

Following a full-bodied challenge in the box, Captain America won another penalty. And once again Willian stepped up to take it and ensure those stats were properly padded ahead of contract negotiations. Make no mistake, each of his last three goals were created by Pulisic. It was a peach of a free-kick at the London stadium though. Credit where it is due and that.

Pulling the strings

Sitting comfortable two goals up at the break, I can't be the only one waiting for things to unravel in the second half. Watford are fighting for their Premier League lives and Chelsea have lacked concentration on occasion this season.

With the exception of a 10 minute period where Kepa came up big, Chelsea maintained control to not only see the game out, but add a third in injury time.

Ross Barkley partnered brilliantly with Mount just ahead of N'Golo Kante. He made a number of intelligent runs and incisive passes and was finally rewarded with a goal. His first in the Premier League in 20 months. It was an instinctive finish that Ben Foster could do nothing about.

With the form Man United have found themselves in after including Bruno Fernandes in their midfield, Chelsea have no choice but to keep winning. A resilient Crystal Palace side with not much to play for is up next. With any luck, Gary Cahill can step up and be the double agent.

jenny x

RESULT: Chelsea 3-0 Watford

GOALS: Giroud 28, Willian 43, Barkley 90+2

CHELSEA XI: Kepa, James, Christensen, Zouma, Azpilicueta, Barkley, Kante (Gilmour 78), Mount (Hudson-Odoi 76), Willian (Loftus-Cheek 76), Pulisic, Giroud (Abraham 76)

STAR MAN: Christian Pulisic