During the Antonio Conte era at Chelsea, the team often turned to Eden Hazard and Diego Costa when they needed a goal.
They were the Blues‘ two best forwards, finishing the 2016/17 campaign with 36 Premier League goals combined.
Victor Moses was nowhere near as prolific as the two, which was understandable. After all, Conte had converted him from a winger to a right wing-back.
However, there was one game where the Nigerian had to take the mantle from Hazard and Costa and find Chelsea’s winning goal.
Chelsea wing-back Victor Moses celebrating goal against Tottenham
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Victor Moses scored winner against Tottenham to make it seven wins in a row
Exactly eight years ago, Chelsea went into a London derby against fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur on a run of six consecutive league victories.
At one stage, it looked like Mauricio Pochettino’s men would end that streak. Christian Eriksen scored a fantastic goal just after the 10th minute, capitalising on Chelsea’s very poor start to the game.
However, following Pedro’s equaliser on the stroke of half-time, Moses popped up with a winner in the 51st minute and guided Conte’s side to their seventh consecutive victory in the Premier League.
That run only came to an end when Chelsea travelled to White Hart Lane at the beginning of 2017 to face Tottenham again in the reverse fixture.
It did not matter, though. Chelsea went on to win the title and comfortably, finishing seven points above second-place Tottenham.
In Conte’s eyes, Moses was someone who had been “underestimated”. However, after becoming a Premier League champion, the former Nigeria international started to get the respect that he deserved.
Chelsea teammates Eden Hazard and Victor Moses shaking hands
Photo by Michael Regan – The FA/The FA via Getty Images
Victor Moses’ 2016/17 campaign in numbers
In total, Moses played 40 games in all competitions for Chelsea in the 2016/17 season. He only managed to score four goals, but Conte would not have cared. He did his job as a wing-back, bombing up and down the right flank.
Victor Moses’ 2016/17 stats Appearances Goals Assists
Premier League 34 3 3
FA Cup 4 0 1
EFL Cup 2 1 0
Total 40 4 4
Enzo Maresca does not use a system that employs wing-backs, but if that ever changes, Moses is the sort of individual that the Chelsea manager will want.
Of course, his idea of what his right-sided defender should do is very different to Conte’s, with the 45-year-old preferring Reece James or Malo Gusto to invert into midfield rather than go down the flank.