Palmer at the double as Chelsea cling on to victory despite late scare at Luton

With 20 minutes left Chelsea were 3-0 up and cruising towards a polished victory over a beaten and outclassed Luton. At that stage nobody could have imagined that Thiago Silva would be screaming at his teammates to wake up as the game headed into six minutes of added time and Luton poured forward, sent cross after cross into the air and went close to snatching the unlikeliest of points.

Mauricio Pochettino could not believe it. Did Chelsea switch off after Cole Palmer ran through to score his second of the afternoon? Did they think that Luton, who had already given Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City a run for their money at Kenilworth Road, would lie down?

The problem with having such an inexperienced group of players is they lack the nous to judge the mood of the game. It should have been a routine away win. Pochettino should have left with evidence of his young side growing, learning and building valuable momentum after a maddening start to the season. Luton’s dramatic if doomed fightback merely left Pochettino with more questions.

Still, at least Chelsea ended a run of four consecutive away defeats, Palmer’s fine double and another for the resurgent Noni Madueke enough to keep Luton in the bottom three. Pochettino’s side remain in 10th place, the top four still out of reach, and this was the first time they had won back-to-back league games since early October. The talent is undoubtedly lurking within this squad. Is the consistency?

For 70 minutes this was a step in the right direction. Chelsea took control from the start and Madueke, starting after his goalscoring cameo against Crystal Palace, immediately looked dangerous against Alfie Doughty on the right. Thomas Kaminski had to save well after a run from Madueke ended with Conor Gallagher shooting at the Luton goalkeeper’s legs.

The financial mismatch began to feel overwhelming. Pochettino could afford to make four changes without really weakening his side. Armando Broja, keen to prove that Chelsea have no need to sign a new striker in January, impressed with his strength and movement. Nicolas Jackson caused problems down the left.

Ross Barkley pulls a goal back for Luton by scoring a header against his former club. Photograph: Shaun Brooks/Action Plus/Shutterstock

Ross Barkley, once of Chelsea, looked to steady Luton with a lovely turn away from Gallagher. Such confidence was not for everyone, though. After 12 minutes Palmer, back from suspension and preferred to Christopher Nkunku in the No 10 role, spun and sent Jackson away.

It seemed that Luton had survived after Jackson took the selfish option, shooting at Kaminski from a tight angle. In this era of playing out from the back, though, sometimes there is something to be said for simply clearing your lines. So it proved when Issa Kaboré proceeded to give the ball straight to Palmer, who smashed a venomous shot into the far corner.

Chelsea had scored first in an away game for the first time since 2 October. They continued to keep Luton at arm’s length, though Barkley remained influential, threatening an equaliser with a free-kick.

It became the Barkley show for a while. He never settled at Chelsea but was desperate to be the dominant playmaker here. One slightly needless pirouette was very much for show. Chelsea had more substance in attack. They weathered a brief spell of pressure and strolled into a 2-0 lead shortly before half-time.

It all felt too easy when Levi Colwill advanced down the left and Madueke received Palmer’s pass on the edge of the area. He stood Amari’i Bell up and tried to cut inside, then surprised the Luton defender by moving outside, making space for a right-footed shot that soared powerfully inside Kaminski’s near post.

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Luton responded with two half-time changes, Chiedozie Ogbene and Tahith Chong replacing Jacob Brown and Kaboré. The substitutes injected more urgency and a surge from Chong made an opening for Ogbene, only for Silva to make a crucial block.

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Chelsea remained in control, Djordje Petrovic commanding when he came off his line to claim Luton’s set-pieces. They were in the clear when Jackson, who is off to represent Senegal at the Africa Cup of Nations, turned and sent Palmer through to score again.

Somehow, Luton refused to lie down. Adebayo headed against the bar and had a goal ruled out for offside. Barkley finally got his goal, heading in from a corner, and the mood changed. Petrovic made a stunning save from the substitute Carlton Morris.

With three minutes left Ogbene crossed again and Petrovic saved from Doughty, only for Adebayo to score the rebound. Chelsea were relieved to hear the final whistle.