Chelsea put their off-field problems behind them as goals from Trevoh Chalobah, Mason Mount and Kai Havertz gave them a 3-1 win at bottom side Norwich.

Only minutes after Thomas Tuchel had insisted he was still happy at the club despite owner Roman Abramovich being sanctioned by the UK Government on Thursday, Chalobah nodded them ahead at Carrow Road to cast aside any questions about his squad's mindset.

It was two inside a quarter of an hour as Mount fired powerfully past Tim Krul after good work from Havertz, as a feeble Norwich struggled to deal with Chelsea's intensity and were fortunate to go in at the break within two goals of their visitors.

"2-0 is always a difficult scoreline if you don't score the next goal," was Tuchel's assessment of his side's half-time lead, and so it proved from a rejuvenated Norwich.

A double change at the interval provided just the tonic they required, with Milot Rashica's raw pace and direct running, as well as a change in shape from manager Dean Smith, causing the Blues all sorts of issues after the break.

When Chalobah was penalised for handball by a VAR review, Teemu Pukki's penalty provided a richly-deserved route back into the game with 20 minutes to go, but, despite plenty of bright build-up play, the Premier League's basement side never had enough cutting edge to truly threaten an equaliser.

Instead, Chelsea put the game to bed through another increasingly common moment of Havertz magic, as the German's postage-stamp finish found the top corner from N'Golo Kante's square ball in the final minute of normal time.

The Blues' third win in a row moves them eight points clear of Arsenal and seven behind second-placed Liverpool, who have played a game less. Norwich remain rooted to the bottom of the table, five points adrift of 17th-placed Everton, but with three more games already played.

Player ratings

Norwich: Krul (7), Aarons (7), Hanley (6), Zimmermann (5), Kabak (6), Williams (5), Normann (5), Lees-Melou (6), McLean (6), Sargent (6), Pukki (7).

Subs: Rupp (6) Rashica (8), Rowe (n/a).

Chelsea: Mendy (6), Christensen (5), Silva (7), Chalobah (7), Azpilicueta (7), Kovacic (6), Jorginho (5), Saul (6), Havertz (8), Werner (6), Mount (8).

Subs: Loftus-Cheek (6), Kante, Lukaku (n/a).

Man of the match: Kai Havertz.

No blues for Chelsea as bright start sees them home

It took just two minutes and 50 seconds for Chelsea to put their off-field woes behind them as Chalobah nodded beyond a hapless Krul - one of seven Norwich players inside their own six-yard box - to give them the perfect start at Carrow Road.

Mount provided the perfect delivery for the opener and continued running the show, alongside Havertz, from then on and it was no coincidence the two combined for Chelsea's second.

Havertz, continuing his fine run of recent form, showed a quick pair of heels to Christoph Zimmermann before squaring for Mount, whose first touch took him away from Ozan Kabak, before he fired into the roof of the net with his second.

In the final minutes before half-time the Blues enjoyed near-total dominance on the level Manchester City had managed against Manchester United at the weekend - enjoying 74 per cent of the total first-half possession - without the vital third goal to end the game as a contest.

It seemed of little importance at that point given Chelsea's level of dominance and Norwich's willingness to wilt, but the introduction of Rashica and Lucas Rupp at the break, coupled to a move to a back four, revitalised Smith's side.

What they lacked in intensity before half-time they more than made up for after it, and their just rewards would follow midway through the second period. Chalobah lent into Rashica's cross with his arm, and was penalised by a VAR review with referee Martin Atkinson pointing to the spot after visiting the review monitor.

Smith was off his seat again when a free-kick from deep was nodded across goal by Kenny McLean moments later, but Edouard Mendy's diving catch put paid to Norwich's final chance of note.

Their fightback was then ended by Havertz in the 90th minute, but their spirit was undamaged. More concerning for Smith will be the 45 minutes he witnessed before his personnel and shape changes, coupled with some half-time home-truths, finally sprung them into life.

What's next?

Norwich travel to Leeds on Sunday for a crucial game in the battle for Premier League survival; kick-off 2pm. Up next for Chelsea is a home match against Newcastle on the same day, live on Sky Sports; kick-off also 2pm.

Teams

Norwich City Krul, Zimmermann (Rupp 46), Hanley (c), Kabak, Aarons, Lees-Melou, Normann (Rashica 46), McLean, Williams, Sargent (Rowe 84), Pukki
Subs Not Used Gunn, Gibson, Giannoulis, Dowell, Placheta, Sorensen
Booked
Goals Pukki 69 (pen)

Chelsea Mendy, Chalobah, Silva, Christensen, Azpilicueta (c) (Loftus-Cheek 46), Jorginho, Kovacic (Kante 85), Saul, Mount, Havertz, Werner (Lukaku 86)
Subs Not Used Kepa, Rudiger, Kenedy, Sarr, Vale, Ziyech
Booked Mendy, Chalobah
Goals Chalobah 3, Mount 14, Havertz 90

Attendance 27,606

Referee Martin Atkinson

VAR Jarred Gillet