Hull 2-3 Chelsea: A victory achieved in fear.

Chelsea had a dream start to their Premier League campaign away at Hull in round 30. Star players Hazard and Diego Costa scored in quick succession, giving Chelsea a two-goal lead within just nine minutes of kick-off.

However, Hull showed resilience despite conceding an early goal. The home side played an attacking game against Chelsea, even dominating the league leaders in the first half. Within just two minutes, in the 27th and 28th minutes, Hull scored in quick succession through Ahmed El Mohamady and Abel Hernandez. It wasn't until the 77th minute that substitute striker Loic Remy scored to give Chelsea a 3-2 victory.

The three points helped Chelsea maintain their firm hold on the top spot in the Premier League. Mourinho's side are now six points ahead of second-placed Manchester City with a game in hand.

Chelsea return to winning ways in the Premier League. Photo: Reuters.

Chelsea's form has stalled recently with two consecutive draws against PSG and Southampton. Entering the match against a bottom-of-the-table team like Hull was an opportunity for Chelsea to break their winless streak. Contrary to expectations of an easy game, Mourinho's team endured a terrifying 90 minutes at the KC Stadium.

Hull played on equal terms with Chelsea thanks to their fast-paced attack and physically demanding style of play, which left the visiting team's stars exhausted. This was a sensible tactic by manager Steve Bruce, as Chelsea's players were showing signs of fatigue after playing continuously in three competitions over the past two weeks.

Besides tactical and technical skills, the spirit of the Hull players was the most commendable aspect of this match. They didn't collapse despite conceding two early goals and calmly capitalized on every opportunity and even their opponent's mistakes. In the first goal, Andrew Robertson dribbled past three Chelsea players before crossing the ball to El Mohamady for the equalizer. In the second goal, a mistake by Courtois gifted Hernandez the equalizer after just 74 seconds.

Chelsea wanted to finish off Hull quickly and they almost succeeded with Hazard's opening goal in the second minute. The Belgian midfielder stunned the Hull defense with a left-footed shot from the edge of the penalty area. Just minutes later, Diego Costa doubled the lead, simultaneously moving level with Harry Kane in the Golden Boot race with 19 goals.

El Mohamady scored to reduce the deficit for Hull. Photo: Reuters.

However, Costa's goal was Chelsea's last notable moment in the first half before being overwhelmed by Hull's powerful style of play. Hull's wingers Robertson and El Mohamady constantly harassed the flanks, while striker N'Doye tormented the Chelsea defense. Hull created numerous chances in front of Courtois' goal. Chelsea could even have ended the first half trailing if Hernandez had scored from a favorable one-on-one situation early in the game. First-half statistics show Hull had 14 shots on goal compared to Chelsea's three.

In the second half, Chelsea had a chance to take the lead, but Fabregas shot wide from inside the penalty area. Chelsea had a good start, but they lost their mental advantage, just like in the first half, allowing Hull to comfortably build up play.

Remy tapped the ball in from close range to seal the victory for Chelsea. Photo: Reuters.

The turning point came midway through the second half, when Hull had a clear chance to score, but Courtois redeemed himself with three consecutive saves against powerful shots. It was at this point that Mourinho showed his tactical acumen by bringing Remy on to replace Costa. The French striker took just over a minute on the pitch to score the winning goal, securing a 3-2 victory from a Willian cross.

Remy's goal cost Hull crucial points and means they continue to fight for survival this season. Hull are currently 15th and only three points above the relegation zone.

According to VNE