SOUTHAMPTON, England (AP) — Chelsea consigned Southampton to its latest humiliating defeat in the Premier League, with the 6-0 thrashing on Saturday proving good shooting practice ahead of a must-win Champions League in midweek.
Mason Mount and Timo Werner both scored twice while there were also goals for Marcos Alonso and Kai Havertz for Chelsea at St. Mary’s Stadium.
Southampton has been beaten 9-0 in each of the past two seasons and a similar scoreline looked likely when Mount scored Chelsea’s sixth goal in the 54th minute.
The visitors stepped off the pace in the final half-hour, though, perhaps saving some energy before the second leg of their Champions League quarterfinal matchup against Real Madrid on Tuesday. Madrid won the first leg 3-1 at Stamford Bridge and Thomas Tuchel took the opportunity to withdraw Havertz, Thiago Silva and Mount early.
It could easily have been a heavier loss for Southampton, with Werner striking the goal frame on three occasions in the first half.
Chelsea consolidated third place in the league and moved 10 points behind second-place Liverpool.
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