Irons Inspired : West Ham 1 Chelsea 1

Frank Lampard showed the nerve which has made him one of England's finest players to rescue a point to draw 1-1 with West Ham which takes Chelsea four points clear at the top of the Premier League at Christmas,reports sportal.co.nz.
Lampard, once hailed but now routinely jeered inside the Upton Park ground he graced as a youngster, slotted home a penalty in the second half which he was forced to take three times.
Some players might have been thrown by that. Lampard simply kept rippling the back of West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green's net until referee Mike Dean finally signalled the goal which cancelled out a first-half penalty by Alessandro Diamanti.
But if it signalled two dropped points for Chelsea in their quest for the title, then for West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola perhaps this was the corner he has been waiting to turn.
The corner which means the Hammers will not be bottom on Christmas Day, which is usually a prelude to relegation.
Instead, Zola can forget bringing in a psychologist, as he had admitted thinking of, to boost the confidence of his West Ham players.
All he needs to do is show them the video of this battling performance, when at last they added grit to their undoubted style.
Maybe the improvement was sparked by the fact that Zola was facing his old club and opposing manager Carlo Ancelotti, with whom he used to play for Italy.
You certainly could not fault West Ham's work rate, nor their readiness to play football. It was committed to the fluent, passing, scampering style of play for which Zola has always been famed.
Scott Parker, in particular, was a terrier in the centre of midfield. So was Jack Collison, while Guillermo Franco was a threat up front.
True, Chelsea, with Joe Cole and Lampard back on the ground where they learned their football, always had more physical power.
They might have taken the lead after 22 minutes when Branislav Ivanovic's powerful header from a corner was chested off the line by Parker.
Lampard, who received a predictably hostile reception, also spurned a good chance when he fluffed a left-footed shot from eight yards.
But it was West Ham who took the lead and no-one could say they did not deserve it, even if it was via the penalty spot.
Collison surged at the heart of Chelsea's defence and as he bore down on goalkeeper Petr Cech, England full-back Ashley Cole slid in.
The tackle needed to be perfect. It wasn't and referee Mike Dean had no hesitation pointing to the spot to allow Diamanti to send Cech the wrong way.
Cue the sort of Upton Park euphoria which has been in scarce supply this season.
It must have been an easy half-time team talk for Zola. Carry on playing as you are.
And they tried to, snapping and harrying the blue shirts with a tenacity which made a nonsense of their lowly league position.
They were undone by what looked like a dodgy refereeing decision from Mr Dean, who pointed to the spot when Matthew Upson tackled Chelsea substitute Daniel Sturridge.
It looked as if he took the ball, a message he attempted to deliver to the assistant referee when he raced to the touchline miming the shape of a football.
No matter, Lampard took the spot kick and scored, only for it to be scratched by the referee for encroaching players. Lampard tried again and scored again, only for the picky Mr Dean to order the kick to be retaken once more.
To Lampard's credit he did not let it upset him, stroking the ball home once more and this time the referee did point to the halfway line.
West Ham could have let their heads drop as they has done in recent months when faced with adversity.
But they did not and it took a diving save from Cech in the 72nd minute to beat away a powerful left-foot shot from the lively Diamanti.
They also found the resilience to keep out a surging Chelsea finish.
"Things can change very quickly in football," Zola told the fans in the matchday programme.
He was right. Now the Hammers need a lot more of the same.

Avram Returns : Chelsea 2 Portsmouth 1

A second-half penalty from Frank Lampard spared Chelsea's blushes as bottom club Portsmouth threatened to further undermine their title ambitions, reports sportal.nz.
Lampard scored from the spot in the 78th minute after Branislav Ivanovic had been fouled by Marc Wilson.
Chelsea had followed defeat to Manchester City with a 3-3 home draw with Everton but were back to winning ways for the first time in five games in all competitions to restore their three-point lead at the top of the table.
Lampard's strike also ruined former boss Avram Grant's return to Stamford Bridge after lowly Pompey had threatened to leave with a point when Frederic Piquionne cancelled out a first-half goal from Nicolas Anelka in the 50th minute.
Yet again Chelsea's defending from set-pieces was called into question as they conceded their 12th goal out of 14 this season from a dead-ball situation.
Chelsea almost opened the scoring in the second minute when Michael Ballack's shot flashed just the wrong side of Asmir Begovic's left-hand upright.
Anelka was just as close with a 20-yard drive that was tipped around the post by Begovic.
Chelsea were completely on top and a corner from Deco in the seventh minute found the head of Ballack.
The Germany captain flicked the ball into the six-yard box where Salomon Kalou headed over the bar from point-blank range.
England midfielder Lampard, normally deadly from the edge of the penalty area, was thwarted by Begovic in the 18th minute.
The Pompey goalkeeper dived low to his right to collect Lampard's low drive with some ease.
But the goal finally arrived for the home side when central defender Alex made a stunning run down the right flank and crossed for Anelka to sidefoot home from six yards.
The Brazilian defender held off the challenge of Hermann Hreidarsson to pull back for Anelka who finished with ease.
Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech had been a spectator for most of the first-half but the Czech Republic international preserved the home team's lead in the 33rd minute.
Portsmouth finally put a decent move together with Jamie O'Hara feeding Piquionne.
The Pompey striker turned and hit a vicious low shot which Cech did well to save as the ball sped towards the bottom corner.
But Chelsea responded quickly and when Ballack played a free-kick into the path of Alex, the Brazilian drilled a shot just wide of the far post.
In the 40th minute, Portsmouth should have equalised when Ivanovic gave away a free-kick.
But former Chelsea defender Tal Ben Haim headed O'Hara's free-kick just over from six yards.
Chelsea's nervousness from set-pieces was clear to see and Kevin-Prince Boateng almost made them pay in the 43rd minute but shot wide.
However, Chelsea's set-piece disasters continued in the 50th minute when captain John Terry fouled Boateng 25-yards out.
O'Hara's free-kick rebounded against the wall and then off the unfortunate Ashley Cole into the path of Piquionne who fired an equaliser into the roof of the net.
Ancelotti's insistence that his side would learn their lessons from recent setbacks had clearly fallen on deaf ears.
But Chelsea only had themselves to blame. They had given away so many free-kicks around the penalty area that it had only been a matter of time before Portsmouth took advantage.
The response from the home side was immediate as they increased the tempo of the game.
But yet again Chelsea had waited for the opposing team to score before they began to play with restored intensity.
Ivanovic forced Begovic into a fine save when the full-back let fly from 25 yards in the 57th minute.
Ancelotti had clearly seen enough of the disappointing Deco and in the 58th minute, the Portugal international made way for Joe Cole.
Five minutes later Chelsea replaced John Mikel Obi with Florent Malouda as the home fans became more and more frustrated by their inability to re-impose themselves on the bottom club.
Anelka forced Begovic into a fine save at his near post but Chelsea's attempts to get back in front were somewhat laboured.
Chelsea finally got themselves out of trouble in the 78th minute when Ivanovic was felled by Wilson inside the penalty area and Lampard fired home the spot-kick to make it 2-1.
Substitute Fabio Borini then squandered a chance to make it three when he fired wide from an acute angle after rounding Begovic in the injury time.

Toffees Untamed : Chelsea 3 Everton 3

Chelsea's suicidal defending from set-pieces threatens to wreck their title ambitions as they failed to win for the fourth game in a row, drawing 3-3 with Everton, reports sportal.nz.
The Blues have now conceded 10 goals in their last four games and all three Everton strikes arrived courtesy of a Chelsea defence that looked clueless at free-kicks and throw-ins.
Everton became the first team this season to leave Stamford Bridge with any reward but Chelsea should have put this game beyond the Toffees long before half-time.
Everton took a shock 12th minute lead when a Louis Saha header off a Leighton Baines free-kick hit the post and rebounded into the net off the back of Petr Cech.
But Chelsea hit back and goals from Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka put the Blues in front only for substitute Ayegbeni Yakubu to pounce from a throw-in to level the scores in first-half injury time.
Drogba restored Chelsea's lead but another blunder from a free-kick allowed Drogba's attempted clearance to bounce off the back of Saha to make it 3-3.
Chelsea almost took the lead in the fourth minute when Michael Ballack put Didier Drogba clear of the Everton defence but the Ivory Coast striker's effort was just wide of the far post.
But Everton hit back four minutes later when Jo unleashed 25-yard drive that Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech did well to turn away for a corner.
And the Toffees went in front in the 12th minute when the home side were again caught out from a set-piece.
Baines sent the free-kick into the penalty area and although Saha headed the ball on to the post, it rebounded off the back of Cech and into the net for an own goal.
It was only the second goal Chelsea had conceded at home in the Premier League this season.
Not since the opening day, when Hull's Stephen Hunt scored, had any opposing domestic side found the net.
It was the perfect tonic for an Everton side that has won once in its last nine league games.
But Chelsea were level in the 17th minute with a simply worked goal.
Ricardo Carvalho broke forward and evaded a number of challenges before supplying a superb pass for Frank Lampard.
The England international tapped the ball into the path of Drogba who hit a first-time shot into the roof of the net for his 17th goal in all competitions this season.
Anelka then put Chelsea in front in the 23rd minute when Everton failed to clear Lampard's corner and Anelka collected Ivanovic's neat pass and fired into the roof of the net from close range.
Everton striker Jo was forced to hobble off with an ankle injury in stoppage time and replacement, Yakubu, shocked Chelsea with an equaliser seconds later.
Terry failed to clear a throw-in and when the ball bounced off Carvalho, the Everton striker pounced.
After Wednesday's 2-2 draw with APOEL in midweek, coach Carlo Ancelotti called for his players to play with the same intensity for 90 minutes.
But Chelsea once again had stopped playing when they had Everton on the ropes and were punished them again with Yakubu's equaliser five minutes into first-half injury time.
Ancelotti resisted making any changes at half-time and began the second period in a positive fashion.
And in the 58th minute their pressure paid off when Branislav Ivanovic crossed for Drogba to score his 18th of the season.

The Ivory Coast striker fired home from six yards at the far post after Everton's defence failed to intercept the cross.
But astonishing Chelsea again committed defensive suicide in the 63rd minute with yet another set-piece blunder.
It was a comical affair as Heitinga sent over a free-kick into the Chelsea penalty area.
Drogba, helping out in a defensive role, headed the ball into the back of the leaping Saha and it bounced back over Cech and into the empty net to make it 3-3.
Ballack showed Chelsea could almost be as deadly from set-pieces when he forced Howard into a fine save with a 25-yard free-kick in the 74th minute.
But despite the home side's pressure, including another Ballack effort that flew just wide, they could not find a breakthrough and the doubts are growing over Chelsea's title credentials under Ancelotti.

Frustrated Again : Chelsea 2 APOEL 2

Chelsea were made to pay for more costly mistakes as APOEL Nicosia increased the gloom around Stamford Bridge with a 2-2 draw in the Champions League, reports ninemsn.com.au.
Back to back defeats over the last seven days to Blackburn in the League Cup and Manchester City in the Premier League had brought the Blues crashing down to earth after their much-lauded win at Arsenal.
Carlo Ancelotti's side were hoping for a convincing victory over the Cypriot champions to restore morale, but the Blues were undermined by more of the careless errors that proved so crucial in those recent disappointing results.
John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho were exposed by Marcin Zewlakow's early opener for APOEL and, although Michael Essien and Didier Drogba put Chelsea ahead before half-time, the hosts had to settle for a draw when John Obi Mikel's blunder presented Nenad Mirosavljevic with a late equaliser.
While the result does no harm to Chelsea's European prospects as they had already won Group D, Ancelotti will be concerned by another lacklustre display that left them without a win in three matches.
Ancelotti, who rested Nicolas Anelka, Ashley Cole and Petr Cech and gave French midfielder Gael Kakuta and goalkeeper Ross Turnbull their first starts, must have found it hard to understand the slack defending that allowed APOEL to take a shock lead in the sixth minute.
When Constantinos Charalambides slipped a clever pass from the left wing towards the six-yard box, Terry and Carvalho appealed for offside rather than clearing and, with the flag rightly staying down, Zewlakow was able to guide a low shot past Turnbull at his near post.
Joe Cole thought he had equalised when he headed home Florent Malouda's cross, but the midfielder's effort was ruled out for offside.
Chelsea didn't have to wait long to draw level. In the 19th minute, Essien worked a yard of space 25 yards from goal and unleashed a ferocious swerving strike that flashed past APOEL goalkeeper Dionisios Chiotis.
That was Essien's last contribution as he limped off moments later after pulling up in mid-stride. The Ghanian's departure didn't unsettle Chelsea as they moved in front in fine style in the 26th minute.
Signing Kakuta from Lens could cost Chelsea dearly if they are unable to overturn a two-year transfer embargo imposed by FIFA as punishment for inducing the 18-year-old's move.
But the teenager, the youngest Chelsea player ever to feature in the Champions League, is regarded as one of the brightest prospects in Europe and he showed enough flashes of skill to suggest he will be worth the hassle.
He started the move that led to Chelsea's second goal with an incisive run and perfectly weighted pass to Yuri Zhirkov. The Russian cut the ball back to Drogba, who shot low past Chiotis for his 16th goal of the season.
Frank Lampard, on for Essien, went close to increasing Chelsea's lead just before half-time with a skimming shot that went just the wrong side of the post.
It took APOEL some time to recover from Chelsea's two-goal blast but they made a bright start to the second half when Turnbull dived low to his left to keep out a deflected shot from former Blues midfielder Nuno Morais.
Cole almost put the result beyond doubt with a cross that drifted over Chiotis and glanced off the top of the crossbar before Terry had a late effort disallowed for offside.
But Chelsea had lost any sense of urgency by now and they were made to pay for their lethargy in the 87th minute.
Mikel's under-hit pass back to Terry left the England defender with no chance of reaching the ball and Mirosavljevic stole possession, advanced on goal and calmly slotted his shot under Turnbull.

Blues Bruised : Manchester City 2 Chelsea 1

Shay Given emerged a hero on both sides of Manchester by saving a late Frank Lampard penalty to give City a precious 2-1 win over Chelsea and cut their advantage over United to two points, reports sportal.nz.
Carlos Tevez's brilliant free-kick ultimately proved decisive after Emmanuel Adebayor had inadvertently put Chelsea in front, then cancelled out that own goal himself seven minutes before the interval.
However, that hardly told the story as bad tempered Chelsea went down in a hail of yellow cards - six in all - and skipper John Terry went off with a leg injury that will bring a moment of dread to Fabio Capello even if the damage is not too great.
The two first-half goals were certainly not in keeping with a pulsating opening in which City more than matched their highly-rated opponents without ever looking completely secure at the back.
Mark Hughes' men had already been given one warning when Shay Given turned away Drogba's angled drive.
Yet, when he looks at the replay, Hughes will probably conclude the main factor in Chelsea's opener was complete bad luck.
Didier Drogba and Branislav Ivanovic could both have been more closely marked at the start of the scramble but the Blues survived that lapse when Given made his first save.
The ball bounced back to Anelka but Given got behind his shot too.
But the Republic of Ireland star could not legislate for the ball shooting upwards, striking Adebayor on the back and bobbling in.
As Chelsea should not have been awarded the corner which started the whole melee off in the first place, City could have been forgiven for believing it was not to be their day.
Far from it. They poured forward and if their delivery from set pieces had been less persistent in picking out Petr Cech, the equaliser might have come long before it did.
Cech's only mistake had been to come for a Shaun Wright-Phillips' cross and get nowhere near as Richards rose. Ricardo Carvalho read the situation perfectly though and made a splendidly acrobatic clearance.
City kept up their offensive and when Wright-Phillips drove another shot into the Chelsea box it ultimately brought their equaliser.
Terry, who was linked so heavily with a move to Eastlands last summer, was still complaining to referee Howard Webb at halftime that Richards handled Wright-Phillips' shot.
It was difficult to see what the England Under-21 full-back could have done to get out of the way though.
The ball deflected into Adebayor's path and did so again when it bounced back off the England skipper. At the second time of asking Adebayor did not fail to make up for his earlier misfortune.
If Drogba's free-kick in the final minute of the half had been one inch inside Given's left-hand post rather than just outside it, City might have had problems responding.
As it was, they were the ones with the impetus when the sides returned and got their noses in front.
In keeping with the others, there was an element of controversy about the goal.
Ricardo Carvalho did have a point when he claimed he had been looking at the ball as he went for an aerial challenge with Tevez, but he also kept a leg in the air long enough to plant it into the Argentina star's back.
Tevez added insult to the resulting yellow card though, curling a crisp free-kick into the bottom corner.
The loss of Richards and Wayne Bridge to injury hardly assisted City in their efforts to cling on for a win, but Juliano Belletti's studs-first challenge that led to Bridge being carried off could easily have left Chelsea with 10 men.
That bad-tempered tackle led to a few more. At one point Ashley Cole and Deco were booked for offences in the same passage of play.
Prior to that though, Given had emerged the hero when he turned away an admittedly poor Lampard penalty after Onuoha had upended Drogba.
There was still time for Terry to limp off and Drogba to waste a glorious chance to level at the death although City, and Given, deserved their success.

Ballack Ballsup : Blackburn 3 Chelsea 3 (aet. 5-4 on pens.)

Blackburn had keeper Paul Robinson to thank for two penalty saves that sent them into the Carling Cup semi-finals at Chelsea's expense, reports soccernet.espn.go.com.
Rovers will now meet Aston Villa for the right to go to Wembley after former England keeper Robinson saved from Michael Ballack and teenager Gael Kakuta, who took the last kick.
Benni McCarthy, Brett Emerton, Vince Grella and David Hoilett scored Rovers' penalties, with Nikola Kalinic having his saved. Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda and Yury Zhirkov were successful for Chelsea.
In normal time, Blackburn had taken an early lead through Kalinic but Chelsea hit back after the break, with quick-fire goals from Drogba and Salomon Kalou, before Emerton's cross deceived keeper Henrique Hilario.
But, with Chelsea down to ten men after Kalou picked up an injury and having used all their substitutes at half-time, Rovers went ahead again through a McCarthy penalty, only for Paulo Ferreira to lash home the equaliser and force penalties.
Chelsea made the expected wholesale changes for this quarter-final, taking perhaps too much of a risk by resting seven players from the side that won at Arsenal on Saturday.
John Terry, Frank Lampard, Petr Cech, Ricardo Carvalho, Nicolas Anelka, Drogba and Ashley Cole all stood down, with Joe Cole getting another run-out, while teenager Kakuta - at the centre of the row that saw a transfer ban imposed on the Stamford Bridge club - was on the bench.
Blackburn, again without manager Sam Allardyce on the sidelines due to his recent heart surgery, made five changes from the side that drew at home with Stoke last time out. But their alterations were primarily enforced, with Keith Andrews and David Dunn injured, while Franco Di Santo - on loan from Chelsea - was ineligible.
Although Chelsea started well, with Deco prompting from midfield, a determined Rovers found themselves ahead after only eight minutes.
Seconds earlier Kalinic had shot wide after taking a return pass from Jason Roberts. But his next opportunity was far more successful. Morten Gamst Pedersen and Pascal Chimbonda combined well down the left and, when the full back's low cross arrowed into the six-yard box, Kalinic finished in style.
Emerton flashed a 20-yarder wide as Rovers kept coming forward and the nearest Chelsea got in the opening exchanges was a diving header from Kalou, following Ferreira's cross, that skidded wide of the far post.
Chelsea's response took a long time to get up any steam, with Cole shooting wide and then Ballack crashing a volley into the side-netting from Malouda's right-wing cross.
But it was Blackburn who continued to look dangerous, and Chris Samba saw a header pulled down by Hilario, the keeper being clattered to the ground by the big defender for his troubles.
The hosts could see their opportunity against a weakened side, with Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti only having Drogba from his front-line troops on the bench.
Ancelotti could hardly have been impressed with Chelsea's first-half efforts and he made three substitutions for the second period. Not surprisingly, on came Drogba as well as Kakuta and Jeffery Bruma, with Cole, Juliano Belletti and Deco making way.
And Chelsea were level within two minutes of the restart. Malouda's cross came in from the left and Drogba rose above Ryan Nelsen to head powerfully past Robinson.
It did not take Chelsea long to go in front, with Blackburn punished for some dreadful defending. Zhirkov found all the time in the world to send Kalou racing into Blackburn's half, without a defender within 20 yards of him, and the striker coolly rolled his shot wide of Robinson after 52 minutes.
Rovers sent on Grella for Pedersen after 61 minutes and were level three minutes later. Emerton's swirling cross came in from the right and, although Kalinic went for it and claimed the goal, the ball looked to sail straight in and past a bemused Hilario.
Roberts was replaced by youngster Hoilett with 20 minutes left. But Chelsea were left with only ten men for the last 19 minutes, having used all their substitutes at the break, when Kalou limped away with a groin injury.
Elrio Van Heerden replaced Steven Nzonzi at the start of the extra half-hour, and Rovers were ahead a minute later. Zhirkov brought down the nippy Hoilett and McCarthy rammed home the penalty.
But, in the second minute of injury-time at the end of 120 minutes, Chelsea were level when Ferreira lashed home after Robinson had fumbled a Malouda free-kick to send the game to penalties.
Ancelotti defended his decision to field a weakened side at Blackburn in the Carling Cup quarter-final, and then to use all three substitutes at half-time. A string of debatable decisions by Ancelotti contributed to Chelsea's demise, including using all three substitutions before injury reduced them to 10 men for almost 50 minutes of the match.
He even chose French teenager Gael Kakuta to take the crucial pressure penalty in the shoot-out, which was saved by Paul Robinson to send Rovers through. Kakuta is the former Lens youngster whose move to Stamford Bridge has seen Chelsea fined and banned from transfer by FIFA, with an appeal pending.
Ancelotti, who rested seven top players including John Terry and Frank Lampard, said: "We had priorities this week with league games against Arsenal and Manchester City. I felt we fielded a strong team. But in the first half they did not play well. That is why I used all three substitutes, it is not something I usually do.
"Then we were unlucky to have Salomon Kalou injured in the second half, and that meant we were left with 10 men. It was just unfortunate, but we still played well with 10 against 11.
"As for using Kakuta for that last penalty, it was my decision. I have seen him take good penalties during training, and I felt he could handle it.''
Blackburn assistant boss Neil McDonald, standing in for Sam Allardyce following the Ewood Park manager's heart surgery, was critical of Ancelotti's decisions.
He said: "I hope they regret making so many changes and not fielding a stronger team. Maybe they should have looked at our home record and realised that we are a decent side here.
"They should have played a stronger side. But I have to praise Paul Robinson for his shoot-out save after making a mistake to give them their equaliser.
"I have spoken to Sam and he is very pleased. He just told us to enjoy the moment and to get ourselves ready for Liverpool on Saturday.''

Gunners Gagged : Arsenal 0 Chelsea 3

Chelsea tightened their grip on top spot in the Premier League and put a massive dent in Arsenal's own title ambitions with a convincing win at Emirates Stadium.
The Blues, then under Guus Hiddink, were the last team to beat the Gunners on their own ground, ripping them apart 4-1 here in May, reports sportal.nz.
While this encounter was nowhere near as much a one-sided affair, it still highlighted the gulf between the two sides' ability to produce a big performance when required.
Chelsea - who restored their lead on Manchester United to five points - grabbed a brace at the end of a first half in which Arsene Wenger's men had enjoyed plenty of possession, but without really troubling Petr Cech.
The Gunners were made to pay when Didier Drogba converted Ashley Cole's low centre, and Thomas Vermaelen's own goal effectively killed off the contest before the interval, with the Ivory Coast striker drilling in a late free-kick to seal matters.
There is, of course, plenty more football to be played before they crown the 2010 champions, but even with a match in hand, it is difficult to see Wenger's young squad - without Robin van Persie until at least April - clawing back what is now an 11-point deficit, and indeed they could still face a battle to secure a top-four finish.
Arsenal may have dedicated this afternoon's match to their charity of the season at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, but there was little compassion shown towards former Gunner Ashley Cole, who was resoundingly booed every time he touched the ball.
It had been a bright start from the hosts, with Bacary Sagna's deep cross flicked back into the penalty area by Andrey Arshavin, but Cesc Fabregas was unable to make decent contact.
Eduardo almost robbed England captain John Terry on the edge of the Chelsea box, but Ricardo Carvalho cleared the loose ball.
Chelsea, though, looked dangerous on the break and were somewhat unfortunate to see Drogba's run clear onto a pass from Joe Cole halted by an offside flag.
Nicolas Anelka, whose big break came at Arsenal, then went down in the penalty area as he got ahead of Sagna, who wrestled him to the ground, but referee Andre Marriner was not interested.
There was a brief stoppage in play when the referee removed an object, which looked like a fake camera, which had been thrown on in the direction of Frank Lampard, the England midfielder fit again following a thigh injury.
Arsenal had plenty of possession, but lacked spark in the final third, with the absence of Dutch forward Van Persie painfully clear.
It was no real surprise when Chelsea went ahead on 41 minutes.
Terry played in Ashley Cole down the left, and he whipped a low centre across the six-yard box, where Drogba got in between the static Arsenal centre-backs to steer the ball into the net off the angle of post and bar.
Before Wenger could regroup his team in the dressing room, it was 2-0.
Cole was again the provider, as this time his ball from the left was deflected into the Arsenal net off Vermaelen's shin.
Wenger had to do something to inject fresh life into his shell-shocked side, and it came in the form of England forward Theo Walcott, defensive midfielder Alex Song the man sacrificed.
Arsenal certainly had more urgency following the restart, and thought they had a goal back when Arshavin smashed home from close range - but the effort was ruled out for a high boot from Eduardo on Cech.
Chelsea almost grabbed a fortunate third goal when Drogba's shot deflected off William Gallas and then Lampard, but Manuel Almunia made a quick change in direction and touched the ball around the post.
Arsenal were getting desperate and called for what would have been a harsh penalty as substitute Carlos Vela went down under a challenge from Branislav Ivanovic.
On 71 minutes, Ashley Cole was replaced by Paulo Ferreira, the England defender clenching his fists towards the travelling Chelsea fans as he left the pitch, before heading straight down the tunnel.

The Blues should have had another penalty wheh JT was swung around by his waist in the lead up to a corner but again Marriner bottled it.
Arsenal threatened, but once again lacked a decisive pass at the key moment.
Drogba wrapped things up for Carlo Ancelotti's men when he smashed in a 25-yard free-kick with four minutes left.

Dragons Defeated : Porto 0 Chelsea 1

Nicolas Anelka stunned Porto for the second time this season as Chelsea finished top of Group D with a 1-0 victory in the Estadio do Dragao, reports SBS The World Game.
Anelka, who scored the winner when the two teams met at Stamford Bridge, stooped to head home a cross from Florent Malouda in the 69th minute.
It was another uninspiring performance from the Blues who had the woodwork to thank in the first half when Fernando Belluschi's 25-yard effort smashed off the crossbar.
But for the third time in Europe this season, Chelsea emerged winners by a solitary goal and in each of those games, Anelka has been the matchwinner.
Chelsea were quickly into their stride against Porto in a surprisingly sparsely populated stadium. There were many empty seats among the Porto sections of the ground and the atmosphere which accompanied the start of the game was hardly intimidating for Chelsea.
In the sixth minute, Malouda, scorer of their wonderful opener against Wolves last Saturday, was off target with a 25-yard low drive which drifted wide of the target.
In the 15th minute, Chelsea won a corner when Didier Drogba's shot was turned over by Beto.
Unfortunately for the English side, Deco floated the flag-kick over everybody in the penalty area.
The Portugal international was given a warm reception by the Porto fans in that part of the ground.
In the 18th minute Michael Ballack almost finished off a neat move by the Blues but his final shot was deflected for another wasted corner.
But the home side almost took the lead in the 20th minute with their first real attack of the game.
Belluschi's 25-yard drive was palmed into the path of Radamel Falcao Garcia by Petr Cech but the Chelsea goalkeeper redeemed himself with another fine save at the feet of the Porto forward. Porto were unlucky not to break the deadlock in the 29th minute when Argentinian Belluschi, playing his first game for a month, again tried his luck from 20-yards.
This time his shot beat Cech in the Chelsea goal but rebounded off the crossbar to safety.
Chelsea were living dangerously but Porto did not appear to have the guile to create anything other than the occasional long-range effort.
A 20-yard drive from Deco flashed past Beto's left-hand upright in the 36th minute.
It was hardly a thrilling spectacle and the stay-away Porto fans clearly made the right decision.
Jesualdo Ferreira's side may have come close to scoring with two long-range shots but Chelsea had coped easily with much of their attacking play.
Time and again Chelsea wasted the ball in good areas, with full-back Branislav Ivanovic one of the main culprits.
Chelsea created nothing in an opening half that was instantly forgettable.
The English outfit made a much better start to the second half and Deco sent a shot flashing beyond the far post in the 52nd minute.
Moments later, Malouda drilled two low crosses into the penalty area but they eluded the Chelsea strikers on each occasion.
At least there was more purpose about Chelsea's play now and Ballack was booked for a challenge on Cristian Rodriguez as the Porto player threatened to run clear.
Porto brought on the Hulk to great cheers from the home fans in the 59th minute. The Brazilian striker replaced Silvestre Varela.
In the 67th minute Chelsea replaced the ineffective Ballack with Michael Essien.
Essien, who scored two goals against Wolves last weekend, was left out of the starting line-up after collecting a minor knock on his knee.
But clearly coach Carlo Ancelotti was anxious to add some drive to a rather lack-lustre midfield.
It brought instant results, although not from Essien. Yuri Zhirkov broke down the left and his pass found Malouda inside the penalty area.
This time the winger's cross found the head of Anelka as the France international stooped to head his third goal of the Euro campaign in the 69th minute.
It was Anelka's sixth goal of the season and his first in eight games for the Blues.
In the 80th minute substitute Ernesto Farias brought a fine save from Cech with a low drive from the edge of the penalty area but Chelsea were home and dry.

Wanderers Wrecked : Chelsea 4 Wolves 0

Chelsea opened up an eight-point lead at the top of the Premier League with a 4-0 demolition of woeful Wolves at Stamford Bridge before Man.Utd. cut it back to five, reports sportal.co.nz.
The Blues were three goals to the good inside the first 22 minutes through Florent Malouda and a double from Michael Essien.
Joe Cole's first goal for 13 months completed the rout in the second half as Chelsea set a new club record for home wins and kept Wolves entrenched in the bottom three.
The victory over Wolves was their 12th in a row in all competitions at home - the previous record was 11 between February 25 and September 17, 2006.
The clean sheet also saw the Blues equal their record of 10 consecutive games without conceding at home.
But they could have gone behind in the fourth minute when a fine Wolves move saw Matthew Jarvis break free on the right.
However, his cross just eluded David Edwards as he arrived in the six-yard box.
Wolves paid a heavy price for the miss a minute later as Malouda collected a poor Wolves header inside the centre-circle and ran on unchallenged to unleash a 20-yard shot into the roof of the net.
Another sweet Chelsea move in the 11th minute almost brought them a second goal but Wolves goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey tipped Salomon Kalou's 20-yard angled drive around the post.
However, the relief for Wolves was shortlived as from Malouda's resultant flag-kick, Essien rose unmarked to head home from six yards.
Chelsea made it three in the 22nd minute when John Mikel Obi fed Essien with a short pass on the edge of the penalty area and the Ghanaian's low drive went under Hennessey for his second of the game.
The home side was determined to record their 1000th league win at Stamford Bridge as well as complete a year since their last defeat at home.
Wolves manager Mick McCarthy had spent much of the half shaking his head in disbelief at his side's reckless defending.
But in the 39th minute Wolves almost conjured a goal out of nothing when a header from Sylvan Ebanks-Blake was superbly kept out by Petr Cech.
Chelsea's performance had been even more admirable without the likes of injured quartet Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Deco and Michael Ballack.
Their quick, incisive passing game was too much for Wolves who spent much of the half chasing shadows.
Chelsea continued where they left off in the second half and a superb crossfield pass by Nicolas Anelka found Malouda free on the left.
However, the France international slipped at the vital moment and saw his shot saved by Hennessey.
The Wolves keeper was in action again in the 52nd minute when he held on to a shot from Alex as Chelsea threatened to increase their advantage.
But Chelsea did make it four in the 56th minute and it was a welcome strike for the fit again Joe Cole.
The England midfielder, out for 10 months since January, side-footed the ball beyond Hennessey after Anelka's cross had been turned into his path by Kalou.
It was Cole's first goal for the Blues since the win over Aston Villa back in October 2008.
Moments later Anelka made way for substitute Gael Kakuta to make his first-team debut.
In September, Chelsea were found guilty by FIFA of inducing Kakuta to breach his contract with Lens two years ago and were punished with a transfer ban until 2011, while suspending the player for four months.
But the Court of Arbitration for Sport suspended the bans until Chelsea's case is heard in full and that allowed Kakuta to make his debut.
Essien almost claimed a hat-trick in the 63rd minute but his shot was palmed onto the top of the bar by Hennessey.
Kakuta almost celebrated his debut with a goal 10 minutes from time but his 25-yard effort curled the wrong side of the upright.
Essien then sent a 20-yard drive just wide of the post as a hat-trick continued to elude him.

Five Points Clear : Chelsea 1 Man. Utd. 0

Captain John Terry put Chelsea five points clear of Manchester United at the top of the Premier League with a second-half match winner to claim a 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge, reports sportal.nz.
Terry glanced home a 76th minute free-kick from Frank Lampard although United claimed Didier Drogba was in an offside position.
United had their chances with Wayne Rooney twice going close but the Blues made it a club record of 11 straight home wins.
It was the home side who created the first goal attempt when Branislav Ivanovic burst down the right flank and let fly with a left-foot shot which Edwin van der Sar did well to hold at the near post.
United though were far more comfortable on the ball with the home side given little time to build from the back.
But a long cross from Michael Ballack in the 18th minute found the lurking Drogba on the edge of the six-yard box but the Ivory Coast striker failed to direct his header on to the target.
United, despite their dominance, had not created a clear cut chance.
In the 23rd minute, Chelsea won a free-kick but Lampard wasted the chance to test the United defence when he sent his curling effort beyond the far post.
Drogba was fouled by Wes Brown in the 27th minute in a central position 25 yards from goal.
It was another chance for the home side but again Lampard's free-kick was poor as he sent his effort straight into United's defensive wall.
Moments later Nicolas Anelka tried to beat Van der Sar from 35 yards but the United keeper dealt with it most comfortably.
Van der Sar was tested again when he made a one-handed save to keep out a curling shot from Anelka in the 32nd minute.
A quick counter attack from Chelsea saw Anelka put Deco free on the right flank but his cross eluded Ballack before arriving at the feet of Drogba.
The Ivory Coast striker was unable to control the ball and it ran harmlessly into the arms of Van der Sar.
Drogba then broke into the penalty from the right flank but his angled drive ended in the upper tier of the stand as referee Martin Atkinson brought proceedings to a finish for the opening period.
In the 50th minute Drogba got the better of United's John O'Shea but his 25-yard shot went wide of the target.
Ivanovic was booked for a foul on Giggs in the 57th minute as the game began to open-up.
Ricardo Carvalho managed to get his body in the way of a fierce shot from Darren Fletcher moments later. It was a fine piece of defending by the Chelsea man.
A cross from Anelka fell kindly to Lampard on the edge of the penalty area but the England midfielder's shot was easily saved by Van der Sar.
Chelsea had gone over 14 hours since they last conceded a goal at Stamford Bridge.
It was time for the home side to make a change and Carlo Ancelotti opted to remove Deco in favour of Joe Cole, who was celebrating his 28th birthday.
Rooney should have punished Chelsea in the 66th minute when he took a return pass from Antonio Valencia on the edge of the penalty area. But the England striker sent his shot a foot wide of the far post.
Seconds later Rooney brought a fine save from Petr Cech with a 20-yard curler which was destined for the top corner until the Czech international intervened.
There was a worrying moment for Chelsea in the 71st minute when Drogba was kicked in the chest by Jonny Evans. Astonishingly, Drogba was then booked by Atkinson.
Chelsea was in front in the 76th minute when Ashley Cole was fouled by Fletcher on the left flank.
Captain Terry rose to glance Lampard's free-kick into the corner of the net but United were furious that Drogba appeared to be in an offside position as the ball bounced beyond Van der Sar and into the net.
Rooney was booked afterwards and then Atkinson booked O'Shea and Carvalho in the 82nd minute as tempers flared.
Valencia was lucky remain on the pitch with a two-footed challenge on Lampard but Atkinson handed him a yellow card.

Transfer Ban Suspended

Chelsea should be able to sign players in January after the Court of Arbitration for Sport suspended their FIFA-imposed transfer ban, reports clubcall.com.
The Blues had been banned from making any transfers in the next two transfer windows after being found guilty of tapping up Gael Kakuta from French club Lens. However Chelsea launched an immediate appeal against the ban and then asked for the punishment to be suspended until the final decision on the situation has been made.
CAS have agreed to that and with the decision only set to be made in the New Year, Chelsea should be free to strengthen in the next window.
A statement from CAS read: "The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has granted the request for a stay filed by Chelsea Football Club Ltd and Mr Gael Kakuta in relation to the decision taken by the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber on 27 August 2009.
"The FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber imposed, inter alia, a restriction of four months' ineligibility on Mr Gael Kakuta, and Chelsea Football Club Ltd was banned from registering any new players, either nationally or internationally, for the next two complete, consecutive registration periods. Such sanctions are now stayed until the CAS renders its final decision in this matter."

Drogba Double : Atletico Madrid 2 Chelsea 2

Didier Drogba announced his return to European football with a brace as Chelsea qualified for the knockout phase of the Champions League with a 2-2 Group D draw at Atletico Madrid, reports wwos.ninemsn.com.au.

Drogba, back after a three-match suspension, scored twice in the final ten minutes to put Chelsea in front only for second half substitute Sergio "Kun" Aguero to score his second with a 90th minute equaliser.
Chelsea knew a win would see them through to the next phase but in the end a draw was enough due to FC Porto's 1-0 win at APOEL in Tuesday's other group match.
Drogba, who had not played in the Champions League since May after he was hit with a three-match ban for berating the referee after the semi-final defeat to Barcelona, showed his striking prowess.
"It was a good game but frustrating because we didn't win it," said Drogba.
"I have played many Champions League games with Chelsea in the past and to be honest I am just happy to be back on the pitch.
"We have qualified which is great although it would have been nice to do it with a win."
Aguero had put Atletico into a 66th minute lead but the Ivory Coast forward headed an equaliser on 82 minutes and struck again on 88 minutes.
Argentine Aguero equalised in the final minute for Atletico's first goal in the competition and ended Chelsea's 100% record but they still progress.
Chelsea now hope to be back in Madrid in May for the final at the Santiago Bernabeu as they aim to win the Champions League for the first time in their history.
With qualification wrapped up Carlo Ancelotti's side can concentrate on the crunch title clash with Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Atletico, third from bottom in Spain, have just two points in the group and can now only hope for a spot in the Europa League as they prepare for a weekend derby against Real Madrid.
"We have a good team here and we will do everything to try and stay in Europe," said Aguero. "It would not be a failure to go into the Europa League."
Chelsea routed Atletico 4-0 in their first match in London a fortnight ago without Drogba and they have the worst defensive record in the Spanish top-flight so they must have feared the worst.
Ancelotti resisted the temptation to rest stars with Manchester United on the horizon and even welcomed back Ashley Cole who recovered from a knee injury to begin at left back.
His opposite number "Quique" Sanchez Flores played a somewhat conservative 4-5-1 with Diego Forlan as the main striker.
Atletico were far from defensive despite their formation and were shooting from long range to try and steal a goal.
Jose Antonio Reyes almost scored in the 20th minute with a super curling shot but Petr Cech tipped the effort over the crossbar.
Chelsea had plundered an impressive 17 goals in their last four matches but didn't threaten too much. However, they went close on the half hour mark when Salomon Kalou, a two-goal hero against Atletico in the first game, headed just wide.
Six minutes into the second half Drogba watched on in agony as his free-kick was touched onto the post by goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo.
Flores decided to throw on Aguero for Florent Sinama Pongolle and it reaped rewards when the Argentine volleyed in from 15 yards out 12 minutes after coming on.
It was Atletico's first goal in this season's Champions League and the first Chelsea had conceded in Europe.
Drogba should have equalised in the 73rd minute after being put through on goal but dragged his shot poorly wide.
However he found his touch in the 82nd minute heading in Malouda's cross and he outmuscled his marker to score again in the 88th minute before Aguero completed a crazy final ten minutes.

Wanderers Whitewashed : Bolton 0 Chelsea 4

Chelsea won at Bolton for the seventh league game in succession, by 4-0, to stamp their hold on top spot in the Premier League, reports sportal.nz.
Beaten in their last two away games, there was no chance of the west Londoners suffering a third against the hosts, who had Jlloyd Samuel sent off.
Chelsea have now scored eight goals in four days against Gary Megson's team, and were brutally destructive when confronted with a team a man down.
It was hard enough for Bolton when they had 11 on the park, but they was merely the victim for Chelsea to bully after Samuel's red card.
Frank Lampard's penalty in first-half injury-time set up the win, with the key moment being Samuel's red card for the trip on Didier Drogba which conceded the spot-kick.
Bolton worked feverishly but it was always a losing battle. Deco added the second and Zat Knight's own goal made it 3-0, before Didier Drogba grabbed a fourth in injury-time.
Bolton brought back goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen and striker Kevin Davies, both rested when these two sides clashed in the Carling Cup fourth round at Stamford Bridge in midweek.
The hosts had Chris Basham in for his first start of the season as Bolton aimed to inflict Chelsea's third successive away defeat, while the Blues reverted mainly to their Saturday-best side.
Tamir Cohen's header over from Lee Chung-Yong's free-kick was Bolton's only serious early chance as Chelsea had five decent early openings.
Drogba headed just over from a Nicolas Anelka cross, then Jaaskelainen touched over another effort from the big striker before saving from Anelka.
Michael Essien flashed an angled effort just wide, before Drogba got clear and was only halted by Jaaskelainen's outstretched boot.
Bolton persisted with their set-plays and aerial attacks aimed at Davies and Johan Elmander, and the ploy concerned Chelsea's defence.
The visitors had a 30th-minute Branislav Ivanovic strike ruled out by a linesman's flag - Michael Ballack was adjudged to be offside. Chelsea players complained bitterly, but referee Peter Walton was unmoved.
Bolton were soon back under pressure - and in the final seconds of injury-time, Chelsea were ahead, after Drogba had been brought down. Lampard lashed home the penalty.
Gary Megson made two half-time changes, sending on Ricardo Gardner and Paul Robinson for Basham and Lee.
Cohen lashed a free-kick over after John Terry had bodychecked Gardner in full flow, then Cohen was too slow to react to a fine Davies knockdown and Essien produced a remarkable saving tackle a yard out.
Drogba was booed every time he touched the ball by Bolton's fans, but he did not dive for the penalty having been clearly caught from behind.
Jaaskelainen made fine saves twice at the feat of the Ivory Coast star, and then from an Anelka effort before Lampard crashed an 18-yard effort against the bar.
Robinson was booked for a foul on Ivanovic before Jaaskelainen beat away a fierce Anelka drive after the former Bolton man had cruised past three defenders.
Chelsea had been under pressure in the air from set-plays, but when they broke from defence after 61 minutes they grabbed their second.
Anelka was the architect, streaming down the left before angling his pass for Deco to sidestep Paul Robinson's lunging tackle to clip the ball into the net.
Bolton sent on Mark Davies for Fabrice Muamba after 66 minutes, with Chelsea firmly in control.
Paulo Ferreira was booked late on, but Chelsea were in full control and it was 3-0 when Knight - under pressure from Ivanovic - got the final touch to Ricardo Carvalho's cross.
Bolton, to their credit, kept coming forward and won a succession of corners which Chelsea were at last beginning to defend properly.
But Chelsea got their fourth in injury-time when Anelka's cross was flicked on by Lampard for Drogba to fire home.

Wanderers Wasted : Chelsea 4 Bolton 0

Chelsea cruised into the quarter-finals of the Carling Cup with an easy 4-0 fourth-round victory over Bolton at Stamford Bridge, reports ESPNsoccernet.
First-half goals from Salomon Kalou and Florent Malouda put the home side in command before Deco and substitute Didier Drogba finished off Gary Megson's side after the break.
Bolton wasted a couple of chances to reduce the arrears but Chelsea were always in control despite the loss of goalkeeper Hilario through injury in the first half.
The win maintained Chelsea's 100% home record under new coach Carlo Ancelotti and even without the likes of rested captain John Terry and his England team-mate Frank Lampard, the Blues continue to look invincible at home.
Bolton must be fearing Chelsea's arrival at the Reebok Stadium at the weekend when the Blues will welcome back their first-team regulars for the Barclays Premier League clash.
Chelsea took control of the tie in the 15th minute when in-form Kalou opened the scoring.
The Ivory Coast international, who notched twice against Atletico Madrid in their Champions League win last week, rose unmarked to head home a cross by Paulo Ferreira.
But Bolton squandered a great chance to level the scores seconds later when a cross from Gretar Steinsson eluded the Chelsea defence and fell perfectly at the far post for Matthew Taylor.
But the Bolton midfielder's first touch let him down and goalkeeper Hilario seized the chance to cut down his angles. Hilario's quick thinking saved the day as Taylor's shot cannoned back off the Chelsea keeper's face.
But Hilario never recovered from the facial blow and went down inside the six-yard box while preparing to take a goal-kick.
It was the end of the proceedings for the Chelsea goalkeeper who made way for substitute Ross Turnbull to make his home debut.
But Chelsea went 2-0 up in the 25th minute when Malouda's header from a Kalou cross rebounded back to him off Zat Knight and the winger tucked the ball home at the near post. .
The visitors looked vulnerable every time the Blues launched an attack and in the 38th minute a sweet passing move between Michael Ballack and Kalou ended with the Ivory Coast international bending a shot beyond the far post.
Kalou was having a fine game but Sturridge looked out of his depth and that was underlined in the 40th minute when Chelsea broke clear again.
Malouda managed to put Kalou clear with a lovely pass, but the Ivory Coast striker was thwarted by a fine one-handed save by Al Habsi.
But when the ball rebounded straight to the waiting Sturridge, the Chelsea striker miscued his volley completely.
Hilario's injury meant the first half was extended by a further four minutes but Ballack wasted a chance to put more distance between the two sides when his attempted curling shot finished closer to the corner flag than the Bolton goal.
Chelsea made a change at half-time when Kalou was replaced by Michael Essien. Bolton also made one change at the break with Steinsson replaced by Johan Elmander.
The visitors should have reduced the arrears in the 54th minute but Turnbull dived low to his left to save an 18-yard drive from Mark Davies.
However, two minutes later saw Chelsea squander an even easier chance when Joe Cole set up Sturridge inside the left-hand edge of the Bolton penalty area. The Chelsea striker turned his marker but then shot wide of the far post when he only had Al Habsi to beat.
Sturridge repeated the miss seconds later when Cole sent him clear of the Bolton defence but again his left-foot shot went wide of the post with Al Habsi floundering.
Bolton were showing more invention since the introduction of Elmander and Chelsea needed a third to make the tie safe.
Ancelotti clearly recognised the need for more goals and in the 61st minute he replaced Sturridge with Drogba.
Bolton paid for some poor finishing when Ricardo Gardner's shot was cleared off the line by Branislav Ivanovic in the 66th minute. Chelsea went straight down the other end of the pitch and a cross from Cole was despatched into the bottom corner from 16-yards by Deco.
Ivan Klasnic was unlucky not to get on the score sheet in the 86th minute but his clever shot rebounded off the far post and Ferreira cleared the rebound.
Drogba then completed the scoring in 89th minute when he rose highest at the far post to convert a lovely curling cross from Cole.
After the match Chelsea coach Carlo Ancelotti was pleased with the performance but he knows it will be a different contest when the two sides meet again at the Reebok Stadium on Saturday.
"I think this is a very good moment for us," said Ancelotti. "Above all, because the players who returned after injury came back very well. Joe Cole came back in the last match and did very well.
"Alex and Paulo Ferreira did a very intelligent match tonight. It's a very good moment. We have to continue and maintain this atmosphere.
"The first thing is to play well and to win a game. It happens we've won with large results, but that's not so important. Rather, we want to win the games. We played the last three games very well, and Saturday can be another kind of match. We have to be ready to play a different match.
"The team are working very well. The defence has balance on the pitch during 90 minutes, maintaining good control defensively and offensively. This is the most important thing for the team, to have a balance."
Chelsea are awaiting a scan on goalkeeper Hilario's head after he was forced out of the action with concussion in the first half.
Ancelotti also voiced his support for striker Daniel Sturridge who squandered two gilt-edged chances to score on his full home debut.
"We are awaiting a scan on Hilario," said Ancelotti. "We're hoping he'll be better in the next few days.
"As for Sturridge, I'm disappointed for him. I think he played 60 minutes well for the team. I asked him to play for the team, not just to score. He did what I asked of him.
"For me, it's not important that he didn't score. The others - Malouda, Kalou - did. For him it would have been better to score, but I'm happy with his work out on the pitch."
Bolton manager Gary Megson admitted his team did not perform but promised Chelsea would face a more difficult encounter when the two teams meet again.
"We didn't play as you need to play against the quality they have," said Megson. "If you don't play at a tempo that might upset Chelsea, or go into challenges that might upset them, then you're not going to damage them.
"It was a poor performance from minute one. We needed to score the first goal, but we were never going to do that with the way we approached it.
"When you can put a £28million sub on - that's as much as we've spent in two years. We can't compete with that on equal terms. Chelsea are stronger than other teams in terms of physical strength, they're quicker, and all the teams that are in the quarter-finals are probably in the top eight of the Premier League.
"I'm pleased to be playing them again on Saturday. We need to put on a performance. That was a bit of a stroll. Our team will be different, not just in personnel but in approach, and I hope we're a lot more wholehearted than it was tonight."
Bolton missed the physical presence of striker Kevin Davies in attack but Megson said he would be back in the starting line-up for the visit of Chelsea to the Reebok.
"Davo gets battered from pillar to post every time he plays. He had three stitches above his right eye against United, and two above his left eye against Everton.
"We just felt it would be unfair to chuck him in as we did against Everton, and then ask him to do the same on Saturday. He needed a breather.
"But we missed a lot of things tonight. We weren't physically as strong as we need to be. Hopefully it'll be a bit different on Saturday."

Rovers Routed : Chelsea 5 Blackburn 0

Chelsea gave Carlo Ancelotti a perfect tonic as they soared back to the top of the Premier League with a 5-0 demolition of Blackburn at Stamford Bridge, reports sportal.co.nz.
Ancelotti, back in the dugout after visiting his seriously ill father in Italy in midweek, watched his side produce a fabulous performance against ragged Rovers to go two points clear at the summit.
Chelsea destroyed Sam Allardyce's side with two goals from Frank Lampard, one a penalty, plus others from Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and an own goal from Gael Givet.
The game was so one-sided that had Chelsea taken all its first half chances, the scoreline could have been in double figures.
But four goals in a 15-minute second half spell handed Rovers their biggest defeat since Allardyce took charge at Ewood Park and kept Ancelotti's 100 percent home record intact.
Joe Cole, making his first start since January, should have opened the scoring for Chelsea within the opening minute but he somehow headed a cross from Lampard wide of the target from six yards.
Lampard was inches away from giving Chelsea the lead in the 10th minute when his 20-yard shot just evaded the far post.
But Chelsea broke the deadlock in the 20th minute with a goal of classic simplicity.
A Blackburn attack broke down allowing Michael Ballack to collect the ball in midfield.
The Germany captain fed Nicolas Anelka on the left flank with a superb low pass and when the France international crossed the ball into the six-yard box, it was turned past his own goalkeeper by the unfortunate Givet.
Blackburn had to rely on counter-attacks and in the 25th minute they almost grabbed an equaliser but Morten Gamst Pedersen's 20-yard effort flashed wide of Petr Cech's right-hand post.
Chelsea's players were lining up to shoot and Essien tried his luck from 25 yards in the 29th minute but although the ball dipped violently in the air, it still went over the crossbar.
Lampard wasted another chance to increase Chelsea's lead moments later when Ballack's cross found him unmarked on the edge of the six-yard box. But the England midfielder put his header wide of the target.
In the 33rd minute, Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson came to their rescue when Lampard fed Anelka inside the penalty area.
A second goal seemed on the cards but Anelka's shot hit Robinson in the chest, much to the frustration of Ancelotti.
It was shooting practice for Chelsea and Robinson did well to punch away a 35-yard blockbuster from Drogba.
Five minutes before the break, Anelka turned and twisted before firing an 18-yard shot into the sidenetting.
Pedersen was the first player into the notebook on the stroke of half-time for a foul on Branislav Ivanovic. Seconds later Robinson pulled off a magnificent save to deny Lampard again.
Chelsea, somewhat predictably, went further in front in the 48th minute through Lampard.
The England midfielder scored his first goal in open play in the top flight since last April when he finished off a fine Chelsea move.
Essien sent Drogba racing into the penalty area and his cross was only half cleared by Lars Jacobsen, leaving Lampard to pick his spot from eight yards.
It was 3-0 in the 51st minute when Essien sent a 35-yard shot thundering beyond the despairing dive of Robinson.
Anelka then tried to repeat the feat in the 54th minute and his 20-yard shot was so fierce that Robinson had to save at the second attempt.
It got worse for Rovers in the 58th minute when New Zealander Ryan Nelsen brought down Drogba inside the penalty area and Lampard converted the spot-kick for his second of the game.
Drogba underlined Chelsea's superiority in the 63rd minute when he rose highest to head home a corner by Lampard to make it 5-0. It was the Ivory Coast international's eighth goal of the season.
In the 67th minute Chelsea replaced defender Ricardo Carvalho with youngster Jeffrey Bruma for his Premier League debut, who looked very composed when called upon.
Cole was then replaced by Daniel Sturridge, making his home league debut, in the 76th minute. Cole received a standing ovation from the fans and a bear hug from Ancelotti.
The England midfielder had shown he was back to his best during an afternoon when Chelsea returned to top form.

Madrid Mauled : Chelsea 4 Atletico 0

Salomon Kalou scored twice as Chelsea took a huge step towards the Champions League knockout stages with a 4-0 thrashing of Atletico Madrid at Stamford Bridge, reports Reuters.
With striker Didier Drogba sitting out the final game of his three-match UEFA ban, his Ivory Coast team mate Kalou grabbed his chance to impress with goals either side of halftime to put his side in charge.
Kalou's strikes deflated the struggling Spanish side before Frank Lampard's shot and a stoppage time own goal by Luis Perea completed a third victory from three matches for Chelsea in Group D.
Carlo Ancelotti's side, who went down at Aston Villa on Saturday to lose the lead in the Premier League, have nine points to second-placed Porto's six. Atletico are bottom with one point and face the prospect of elimination.
Kalou, who recently signed a new contract, plays third fiddle behind Drogba and Nicolas Anelka at Stamford Bridge but underlined his importance to the squad with an all-action performance that could have netted him a hat-trick.
"Drogba is still Drogba," Kalou told reporters. "It's not an insult to be behind him and Anelka because they are two of the best strikers in the world right now. But I'm pleased to get on the pitch and take my opportunity and do my best.
"We have proved that even without our main striker we have the character to win without him. But he will be back next time and that is very important for Chelsea even though its hard to accept if you are not playing."
Kalou, playing alongside Anelka in front of Chelsea's diamond midfield, took a while to warm to the task and was guilty of a terrible miss early on when he dragged a shot wide after being played in by Michael Ballack.
Atletico, who have started the Spanish season poorly, matched Chelsea for most of the first half, particularly in a lively opening spell when Uruguay striker Diego Forlan looked menacing. Twice he tried his luck from distance and also forced an acrobatic save from Chelsea keeper Petr Cech.
His Argentine striking partner Sergio Aguero wasted Atletico's best chance when he rolled Branislav Ivanovic easily but shot wastefully into the side-netting.
Atletico always looked vulnerable at the back and fell behind after 41 minutes when Lampard sent Ashley Cole scuttling down the left and his low cross gave Kalou the perfect chance to make amends for his earlier misses.
Seven minutes after half time Kalou doubled the lead when he sprang high to head Lampard's deep corner past the exposed Sergio Asenjo who was given little help by his defenders.
Aguero then wasted another chance when he dithered too long after being sent clear. As Chelsea took complete control, Lampard rifled in his side's third to snap a 10-game sequence without a goal for the England midfielder.
"I'm happy for Lampard but I think it's important that Lampard is not just about scoring goals," Ancelotti said. "He is very unselfish and works for 90 minutes for the team."
Atletico's miserable night was complete in stoppage time when Perea got the final touch to an inswinging freekick.
"I think it was one of those bitter tastes of football," under-fire Atletico coach Abel Resino told reporters. "We had as many chances as Chelsea but the ball wasn't going for us."

Dire Defending : Aston Villa 2 Chelsea 1

Defender James Collins scored his first goal for Aston Villa to condemn Premier League leaders Chelsea to a second successive away defeat.
Martin O'Neill's 5 million pound capture from West Ham took advantage of slack marking to head the winner after 52 minutes.
Didier Drogba had given the Blues the lead after 15 minutes but Collins' defensive partner Richard Dunne levelled before the interval.
Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti will be frustrated with his side's defending as two corners from Ashley Young presented Dunne and Collins with free far-post headers for the goals.
It completely undermined the threat posed by his side going forward, with Deco shining in a free role behind the strikers.
But Chelsea found Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel in inspired form with a series of excellent saves making amends for gifting Drogba the opening goal.
And Collins and Stephen Warnock also played their part in thwarting Chelsea with a series of excellent blocks.
Skipper Stiliyan Petrov was effective in the centre of the park as Villa maintained their push for a European spot.
The kick off was delayed for five minutes after referee Steve Bennett was taken ill and fourth official Keith Friend stepped into the breach.
Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor had the first effort on goal and his shot on the turn was deflected wide.
The home side had claims for a penalty rejected when Jose Boswinga wrestled with Agbonlahor in the box in attempting to get on the end of a first time cross from Petrov.
James Milner then made a superb tackle inside his own box to deny Florent Malouda.
But after 15 minutes a rare mistake by Friedel, in his 198th consecutive Premier League appearance, allowed Drogba to put Chelsea ahead.
Drogba fired in a hopeful 30-yard drive but Friedel allowed the ball to bounce over his dive and into the corner of the net. It was Drogba's seventh goal of the campaign.
Villa tried to retaliate and Chelsea skipper John Terry made a crucial interception to cut out a low centre from Milner with John Carew and Agbonlahor unmarked in the danger area.
Chelsea were now looking the more likely to score and Ashley Cole was only just too high with a rising drive after a powerful surge forward.
But after 32 minutes Dunne struck for the second successive match to bring Villa back on level terms.
Essien was forced to concede a corner after good link up play between Agbonlahor and Petrov. Young's centre flicked off the head of Frank Lampard and Dunne was on hand to head home at the far past.
The Republic of Ireland international celebrated in a way he had declined to do when netting against his former club Manchester City 12 days ago.
Agbonlahor became the first player to be booked after 35 minutes for a challenge on Essien.
Friedel redeemed himself for his earlier error when tipping over a chip from Deco at full stretch and then made another crucial stop to deny Drogba at point-blank range.
Villa took the lead early in the second half when Collins was left completely unmarked at the far post to power a header past Cech from Young's inswinging corner.
Lampard was only a couple of feet wide with a low 20-yard drive as Chelsea tried to respond, but Friedel showed he had fully recovered from his first-half error with another excellent block on a shot from Deco, who had been put clear by Drogba.
Malouda was then denied by Friedel who beat out his fierce 20-yard shot as Chelsea searched for the equaliser.

Alex And Kalou Commit

Central defender Alex became the second Chelsea player to sign a new contract in as many days yesterday as the Blues look to tie their star names to the club, reports rte.ie.
Alex followed Salomon Kalou in committing his future to the club when he signed a four-year deal to keep him at Stamford Bridge until 2013.
Chelsea seem determined to extend as many of their key players contracts as possible following FIFA's transfer ban.
The Blues are prevented from signing any players in the next two transfer windows after being found guilty of inducing teenager Gael Kakuta to breach his contract with Lens two years ago.
Chelsea have appealed against the verdict and are hopeful of getting it overturned, but in the meantime they are determined to keep their current squad together.
Alex, who is returning to fitness after groin surgery in the summer, has joined Kalou, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba and Michael Mancienne in signing new deals, while Joe Cole is also expected to soon put pen to paper.
'I am very happy to start again to train and feel no pain, and to sign for four more years,' he said .
'It was easy to decide to sign and now I hope to get back to playing well. My condition now is so-so. I think in two more weeks I am 100% and can play without a problem.
'I hope now to start to play in the Chelsea games and play very well.'
Boss Carlo Ancelotti has yet to manage Alex in a Chelsea game but is well-versed in the Brazilian's ability.
His AC Milan side contested a tight Champions League semi-final in 2005 when Alex was at the heart of the PSV Eindhoven defence.
Ancelotti welcomed the defender's decision to continue his career at Stamford Bridge and told the club's official website: 'I am very happy that Alex has signed a new contract with the club. He is just returning from injury and surgery but he is a player I know well.
'I am familiar with all of his fantastic qualities, so I am delighted he will be with us for another four years.'

Scousers Scuppered : Chelsea 2 Liverpool 0

Second half goals from Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda gave Chelsea a deserved 2-0 victory over Liverpool and put the Blues two points clear at top of the Premier League.
The France international struck first in the 60th minute when he finished off a sublime low cross from Didier Drogba as Chelsea defied their critics with a performance of grit and quality.
Substitute Malouda sealed the win in injury-time when he slid home another low cross from Drogba.
Carlo Ancelotti's side was desperate to get back to winning ways in the league after its 3-1 drubbing by Wigan last week and a lacklustre victory over Apoel Nicosia in the Champions League in midweek.
But it was Liverpool who had the best of the early exchanges and the game sparked into life in the 12th minute when Fernando Torres was fortunate not to receive a yellow card for a late challenge on Chelsea captain John Terry.
The Spaniard's right foot was clearly too high and raked the shins of the England defender.
However, referee Martin Atkinson opted to give the Liverpool striker a lengthy lecture, much to the annoyance of the home fans.
Liverpool continued to dominate but a shot from Albert Riera was high and wide of the target in the 19th minute.
Michael Essien appeared to be late and high with a challenge on Javier Mascherano but referee Atkinson was perfectly positioned to see the incident and ignored the Reds' appeals. The Liverpool player soon rose to his feet without any damage to his right leg.
Both sides were full of attacking ideas but neither goalkeeper had been tested at the midway stage of the opening half.
Liverpool's Jose Reina finally collected a header from Drogba just beneath the crossbar in the 24th minute but Chelsea's threat was somewhat impotent.
In the 27th minute Reina was called into action again when Essien's cross was met by Anelka.
Anelka was unmarked but despite the luxury of a free header, he could not find a way past the Liverpool goalkeeper.
Liverpool were handed a chance to open the scoring in the 29th minute when Branislav Ivanovic was adjudged to have brought down Torres.
The free-kick was some 25 yards out but Gerrard's effort sailed over the crossbar to the delight of the home fans.
Four minutes later Chelsea squandered a chance of their own after Drogba had been brought down by Jamie Carragher near the corner flag.
Deco's free-kick into the penalty area was well placed but Michael Ballack's header was off target from six yards.
Chelsea were now enjoying their best spell of the game and when Lampard's 38th-minute corner fell to Essien at the far post, the Ghanaian international forced Reina to make a save at the second attempt.
Liverpool responded with Dirk Kuyt crossing for Torres to head straight at Hilario from six yards.
Essien was booked for a foul on Kuyt in the 44th minute and Riera forced Hilario into a late save with a 40-yard low drive.
In the 57th minute Liverpool won a free-kick when Riera was blocked by Ballack - but Gerrard's delivery was met by a confident punch from Hilario and Chelsea survived a difficult moment.
The Blues broke the deadlock on the hour after Mascherano lost possession to Lampard in the Chelsea half. Essien and Deco fed the ball wide to Drogba on the left - and his centre was perfect for Anelka to convert his fifth goal of the season.
In the 63rd minute, Drogba met Lampard's free-kick but his header was well held by Reina - and four minutes later the visitors replaced Riera with Yossi Benayoun.
In the 77th minute Chelsea won a free-kick in a dangerous area when Lampard was brought down by Gerrard.
The challenge earned Gerrard a yellow card and Chelsea almost went two goals in front but Drogba was just wide of the right-hand post with his free-kick.
Chelsea's goal was now under siege and Torres wasted a glorious chance to level the scores when he shot wide in the 80th minute.
Substitute Malouda then settled the outcome when he slid the ball home from close range in injury-time.

Gerrard then hit a volley from the edge of the area which Hilaro palmed away.

Nicosia Nullified : Apeol 0 Chelsea 1

Chelsea bounced back from their first defeat of the season with a laboured 1-0 win over Cypriot champions Apeol Nicosia to make it two wins out of two in the Champions League this season, reports Goal.com.
Nicolas Anelka was again the match-winner and there was a European return for Joe Cole but for long periods Chelsea created very little and the home side almost did enough to steal a point from their more illustrious opponents.
Chelsea made three changes from the team that lost at Wigan at the weekend with Juliano Belletti coming in for the injured John Obi Mikel, and Branislav Ivanovic and Saloman Kalou deputising for the suspended Jose Bosingwa and Didier Drogba.
Ashley Cole recovered from his knee problem in time and continued at left-back, giving a man of the match performance, with Carlo Ancelotti adopting a 4-4-3 formation in favour of the diamond. The hosts, holding their first ever Champions League game, were without Polish strikers Adrian Sikora and Marcin Zewlakow as well as defenders Joost Broerse and Paolo Jorge because of injury.
With the Cypriot side happy to play an open game and make a good impression, Chelsea were quick to exploit the time and space with Michael Essien going close early on with a shot from outside the box that flashed wide.
Seventeen minutes in and Chelsea were ahead. Belletti skipped past his marker on the right wing, then picked out Nicolas Anelka on the corner of the penalty box and the Frenchman clipped the ball past Nicosia keeper Dionisis Chiotis into the far corner of the net. His second goal in as many Champions League games.
From then on Chelsea controlled the first half with neither team really threatening. Flourent Malouda hit a shot from 25 yards that sailed over the bar while Christos Kontis had Apoel’s best chance with a header from a corner that went high and wide.
The home side came out for the second half much livelier and forced Petr Cech into his first meaningful save just after the hour mark. Savvas Poursaitidies found room on edge of the Chelsea and his shot deflected of John Terry, forced Cech to make a difficult save. From the resulting corner, Boban Grncarov just missed a header that flashes across goal.
Malouda had Chelsea’s only chance of the second half, shooting straight at Chiotis from a Ivanovic cross but there was little else to shout about in the second half for the visitors apart from a European return for Joe Cole
Constantinos Charalambides' saw a diving header go the wrong side of the but there was to be no fairytale debut for the Apeol fans and Chelsea maintained their 100% record in Group D.

All in all the Blues made pretty hard work of this game and will have to improve drastically if we are to beat the Scousers on Sunday.

Carlo Not Happy

Chelsea coach Carlo Ancelotti admitted he was far from happy with his team's performance in their uninspiring 1-0 Champions League win over unfancied Apoel Nicosia, reports PA Sport.
Nicolas Anelka's 18th-minute goal gave Chelsea an undeserved Group D victory in Cyprus as Ancelotti's side produced another disappointing performance, but the Italian coach had wanted a big reaction from his team following their 3-1 defeat by Wigan last Saturday, but he failed to get it and was clearly not satisfied. "It was a good result but perhaps not a good performance," said Ancelotti. "We started with good control, scored a goal and we had opportunities to do quick counter-attacks after that, but we didn't do this."He added: "In the second half it was different. We tried to control the game with possession, but we made a lot of mistakes. "Nicosia played very well in the second-half and deserved to draw this game. This is football. "I'm not satisfied. I wanted Chelsea to play better and to take more control, to play with courage. But I think that, in this moment of the season, it's normal. We have to change, for sure."We have to play better. In the first half, the team showed good application of the system and of their defensive duties. "We took good control in defensive positions, but the second half was totally different. We lost a lot of balls. We allowed Nicosia to get back into the game. "I'm not angry with the players. I have a lot of faith in this team and these players. I was a player for a lot of years myself, and I know when things don't go well. "I'm not afraid, not angry with the players. The only thing is that I'd like Chelsea to play better than we did.

Phil "Look At Me" Dowd : Wigan 3 Chelsea 1

Wigan sent shockwaves through the Barclay's Premier League with a shock 3-1 win over 10(or 9)-man Chelsea, reports skysports.com.
Petr Cech saw red in an explosive start to the second-half which saw Chelsea equalise before immediately conceding a penalty, which Hugo Rodallega won and dispatched.
Chelsea had won each of their six games so far this season and only this week were being labelled as almost unbeatable, a tag which manager Carlos Ancelotti rebuffed.
Titus Bramble opened the scoring on 16 minutes when he headed home unmarked from around 8 yards when Charles N'Zogbia delivered after a short corner.
The Latics held on until half-time and perhaps should have taken advantage of some suspect Chelsea defending as Emmerson Boyce shot straight at Cech from inside the six yard box.
Chelsea began the second-half in great urgency and were level on 47 minutes as Didier Drogba steered home Florent Malouda cross past Chris Kirkland in the Wigan goal, who was guilty of failing to hold the Ivorian's tame effort.
Wigan were back in front soon after when Cech brought down Rodallega inside the after the Columbian raced through on goal.
Florent Malouda was sacrificed as Henrique Hilario came in to replace Cech in the Chelsea goal but he was sent the wrong way by Rodallega, who picked himself up to drill home the penalty.
Chelsea were unable to regain control of the game as play resumed and after using all three subs, they were reduced to nine men after Ashley Cole was unable to continue in injury time.
The away side were massively exposed as they desperately searched an equaliser and Paul Scharner capitalised when he poked home from a yard out after great wing play by Maynor Figueroa a minute into added time.

So, another disgraceful display of refereeing. When are prats like Phil Dowd going to realise that the fans come to see eleven men against eleven, not the likes of him.
Make no mistake, if Cech had been wearing a Man. Utd., Liverpool or Arsenal shirt in the same situation he would have stayed on the pitch.
Still, we'll win the league despite the officials, not because of them. We always have before.

Joe Just Happy To Be Playing

Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole was delighted with his return from injury in the Carling Cup third-round victory over QPR at Stamford Bridge.
Cole has been sidelined with a cruciate knee problem for eight months but came back and set up Salomon Kalou's winner just after the interval.
"I'm back now and it's blinding," Cole said. "But I'm not going to get ahead of myself. There is going to be a lot of ups and downs. All I can do is keep working hard in training. If you see the size of the squad we have, a lot don't play week-in week-out so it's vital for them to get airtime," said assistant boss Ray Wilkins.
"It's entirely up to the young men to push themselves forward and the two that played have been doing so in the reserves and training. We want to win everything we enter. Every side that takes to the field in a Chelsea shirt wants to win the game and the tournament they are playing in. If we can blood a few on the way, all well and good."
"It's not a bad substitution to make," Wilkins said. "It's a testament to QPR that we had to use Frank, Ashley and John. QPR equipped themselves very well and gave us a very tough evening. It was nice to see Joe and Paulo (Ferreira) come through the 90minutes, Yury (Zhirkov) got a good hour and the two youngsters did very well too."
QPR boss Jim Magilton was pleased with his side's application. "We have to use it as a springboard," said Magilton. We have a chance of promotion, like 14 other clubs. We had a lack of belief in the final third but I was immensely proud of the overall performance."
Magilton, who started with two strikers, added: "I'm not naive but that is the way I thought we could get after Chelsea. We were encouraged against Cardiff in our last game and some players may not get back to Stamford Bridge so I couldn't deny them that by resting them."
Magilton refused to answer questions on owner Flavio Briatore, whose position has been questioned following his role in Formula One's "crashgate" scandal. "I've never met him," Magilton joked.