West Brom vs. Chelsea: Score, Grades and Reaction from Premier League

Saido Berahino scored twice as West Bromwich Albion clinched a 3-0 win over 10-man Chelsea on Monday evening after Cesc Fabregas saw just his second-ever Premier League red card.

Blues boss Jose Mourinho certainly won't have been pleased with his men showing any restraint in intensity after they claimed this season's Premier League crown, but the Baggies ran out deserved winners, per FourFourTwo Stats Zone:

It took Berahino only nine minutes to open the scoring with a superb shot through the heart of Chelsea's defence, putting Mourinho's men on the back foot before curling an audacious effort past Thibaut Courtois from range.

Squawka showed that while the striker wasn't involved in a great deal of buildup prior to his first goal, all it took was a little flash-in-the-pan brilliance for him to make the difference manager Tony Pulis desired:

West Brom continued to press after establishing their foothold, and the job was made all the easier after the referee gave Fabregas his marching orders for what's likely to be the most needless red card of his career.

Team-mate Diego Costa was shown yellow for a run-in with Jonas Olsson before Fabregas sent the ball flying into a melee of players, although the Mirror's John Cross questioned whether there was intent:

Intentional or not, though, the Spaniard was guilty of hitting Chris Brunt on the head with no real point to the pass, making Chelsea's evening that much more difficult in the process.

The West Londoners managed to make it to the interval with a one-goal deficit, but some words of encouragement appeared to fire the hosts up, Berahino in particular.

It took the England youngster less than two minutes to once again make headway straight for Courtois' goal, earning a penalty after John Terry lunged in late, as Sky Sports MNF showed:

Berahino converted from 12 yards to give the Baggies another boost, and it wasn't long before Brunt was getting his revenge against the Blues, adding a third with 30 minutes to go.

The Northern Irishman went from being the butt of Fabregas' joke to ensuring Chelsea of just their third defeat this Premier League season, scorching home from the edge of the area, per Stats Zone:

That goal capped off a terrible day's work from Chelsea, who will now be without Fabregas for their season-ending fixture against Sunderland next Sunday, not to mention the first two domestic games of 2015-16.

West Brom, on the other hand, come away from the Hawthorns with a terrific three points in hand and new hope for what they might achieve under Pulis' command.

Player Grades

Saido Berahino: A

Rui Vieira/Associated Press

There may not have been a great deal for Chelsea to play for at the Hawthorns, but Saido Berahino's busy performance told a tale of just how keen West Brom were to make an impression on the Premier League champions.

It's not every player, never mind one as young as Berahino, who can say he's put two past a Chelsea side as strong as this, but Squawka points out just what a talisman the Baggies forward has been:

The 21-year-old's first, in particular, will go down as something to interest any potential summer suitors, standing up to some imposing markers and refusing to be bullied as he led West Brom to a memorable triumph.

Cesc Fabregas: D

Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Opinion will undoubtedly be divided over whether he meant to hit anyone, but the fact remains Cesc Fabregas struck a player in the most unnecessary manner and thus left his side needlessly short on players.

Referee Mike Jones came under fire from some claiming the kick only warranted a yellow, but ex-Premier League referee and Daily Mail columnist Graham Poll insists the official got the decision spot-on:

Up until the red-card incident, the Spaniard was having a decent game, boasting a pass accuracy of 88 percent and winning all of his attempted tackles, per WhoScored.com, but one petulant negative ruined those positives.

Post-Match Reaction

Many managers would have been incensed to see their side let their foot off the pedal in the manner that Chelsea did against West Brom on Monday night, but Mourinho was eerily understanding of his men.

According to the official Premier League Twitter account, the Portuguese sympathised with his fallen troops, insisting that without the sense of competition, it's hard to fight with the same vigour as usual:

When asked to comment on Fabregas' red-card offence, the tactician couldn't stop himself from blaspheming, per Neil Ashton of the Daily Mail, to suggest he felt his midfielder was being unfairly punished:

West Brom counterpart Pulis was unsurprisingly more upbeat in his post-match comments and remarked how astonishing it was the way his team had battled in their end-of-season clash.

The Baggies boss noted that things once looked tough but also made sure to take note of just how talented this Chelsea team was that his men had overcome:

Pulis can only hope his first six months in charge at the Hawthorns were a sign of things to come next term, while Mourinho will be hoping to quickly turn his side's fortunes around against Sunderland.