Pedro Neto scored in stoppage time as Chelsea fought back to beat rivals Fulham 2-1 at Craven Cottage on Sunday.
The win breathes life back into Chelsea’s quest to finish in the Premier League’s top five and secure a spot in next season’s Champions League.
Chelsea move up to fifth in the standings with 57 points, level with Nottingham Forest, who travel to Tottenham Hotspur on Monday. Fulham remain in ninth with 48 points.
Asked if his side could go on to finish in the top five, Neto said: “I think it could be a big part of the season for us. We showed character. To be honest, I have no words.
“It is not easy to spend all season in the top four and we were out before this game. The character the team showed, we now need to think about Everton… The belief has always been there, even in the bad moments.”
Fulham shot out of the blocks and thought they had taken the lead when Andreas Pereira netted in the third minute, but the effort was chalked off for offside.
Chelsea responded well and created a handful of opportunities as their wide players sent in dangerous crosses, but the visitors’ forwards were unable to convert those chances.
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The home side went in front after 20 minutes when Chelsea captain Reece James cheaply gave away possession to Ryan Sessegnon, who squared for Alex Iwobi to fire a low shot into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca brought on Malo Gusto and Jadon Sancho at halftime and the changes had an immediate effect, with Sancho looking lively on the left flank and Gusto testing Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno from distance.
Pedro Neto and Sancho drew further saves from Leno, but the visitors huffed and puffed for much of the second half to little effect as their attacking edge was blunted by Fulham’s disciplined defending.
However, just as it looked like Fulham would complete their first league double over Chelsea, substitute Tyrique George scored with an instinctive shot in the 83rd minute to net his first Premier League goal.
The equaliser buoyed Chelsea and they continued to press forward, finding the breakthrough 10 minutes later when winger Neto swivelled and unleashed a thunderous strike to raucous cheers from the away fans.
Fulham manager Marco Silva was disappointed with his side’s performance.
“Unfortunately for us, we wanted to start the second half in the same way and were not able to connect come passes. Our build-up was not at the same level,” the Portuguese coach told the BBC.
“They started to play in our half. I really believe the result is very harsh for us but the second half was not our level and we lost the game.”
The victory ended an eight-game run without a win on the road for Chelsea, who last won away from Stamford Bridge in the Premier League against Tottenham Hotspur in early December.
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