The Times

November 10, 2008

Nicolas Anelka is in his element as Chelsea go back to the top
Blackburn Rovers 0 Chelsea 2
Martin Samuel

It was one of those stereotypical "grim oop north" days, met with one
of those stereotypically gutsy, efficient Chelsea performances. Rain
made the pitch sodden and random, a biting wind made the location
fiendishly inhospitable, yet Chelsea dug in, got in front and breezed
through the rest of the game as if dozing in a deckchair on a summer
day.

They are hugely impressive on occasions such as this, when weaker
teams might shirk or disappear. Chelsea were so resilient, so
determined that they could afford to play much of the second half in
the manner of a training exercise. Knowing how fiercely Chelsea's
players like to play in training, too, maybe this would be a notch
down. Blackburn Rovers never looked likely to beat the redoubtable
Petr Cech.

His performance seemed to sum up Chelsea's excellence: calm, perfect
in his handling, quick to react, equal to the task in the rare moments
when he was tested. Paul Robinson, at the opposite end, was equally
impressive, but his form was more readily noticeable. It had to be: by
the end of the first half, Chelsea might have been five goals clear
were it not for him.

For some reason, the home supporters appeared to believe that Chris
Foy, the referee, had some nefarious role to play in this defeat, but
aside from denying Chelsea a certain penalty in the fifth minute,
which, if given, might have resulted in the dismissal of Robinson, it
is hard to remember a single significant call he made. Chelsea won
because they are at an entirely different level to Blackburn, who
frittered possession, missed Roque Santa Cruz, the forward, and have
not won a league game since September.

The conditions should have been, as the cliché goes, a great leveller,
but it is going to take a lot more than a few puddles to bring Chelsea
down to Blackburn's level. Even an utterly insipid performance from
the play-making Deco did not influence the flow of the game. When it
came to muscle, Chelsea had more of that, too. The big men in the
heart of midfield, John Obi Mikel in particular, and Frank Lampard,
dominated.

The weather was nearly the talking point. Foy persevered through the
first half only after hearing that the deluge would not last beyond
half-time. By the time it stopped, the ball was not travelling well,
particularly in midfield. Had the game not been televised perhaps it
would have been abandoned, as was requested by Paul Ince, the
Blackburn manager (his team were a goal down at the time).

Luiz Felipe Scolari, who celebrated his 60th birthday with champagne
and cake at the team hotel on Saturday night, did not dissuade his
players from adopting their usual style, although Ray Wilkins, the
Chelsea manager's assistant, admitted that the conditions meant
Chelsea had to play longer passes at times. Either way, and with
either system, they had the measure of Blackburn and the comments from
Ince, insisting that his players had the better of the second half,
seemed to stem more from his annoyance at Wilkins's words before the
game than realistic analysis. If Blackburn saw more of the ball after
half-time it was because Chelsea were so comfortable that they took
their foot off the gas.

It could have been even easier had Robinson, who criminally was not
given Blackburn's man-of-the-match prize, been adjudged to have
clipped the feet of Nicolas Anelka when the Chelsea striker took the
ball round him after five minutes. Trying to keep his balance, Anelka
took two steps and stumbled, but Foy ruled that he had merely lost his
footing in the conditions. Replays suggested otherwise.

Robinson saved from Anelka in the thirteenth minute, Mikel in the
fifteenth, Lampard in the 22nd and Anelka again in the 32nd. Finally
beaten five minutes before half-time, it took a stroke of luck, but
nobody can argue that Chelsea did not deserve the lead. Credit to José
Bosingwa, the Chelsea right back, for having the wit to try a shot
from range in the conditions, but commiserations to Robinson, who was
left helpless when what would have been a harmless strike deflected in
off Anelka's thigh.

Chelsea's second, after 67 minutes, was far superior. A pass by
Florent Malouda was blocked before Lampard won a thunderous tackle,
sending the ball to Anelka, who slipped it over Robinson with ease. He
could have had a second consecutive hat-trick in the Premier League
with two minutes remaining, but was kept out by Robinson, whose
confidence appears to have been restored by the end of his working
relationship with Juande Ramos, much like his former teammates at
Tottenham Hotspur.

Ince's version of events is overstated, but his side did force two
excellent saves from Cech: from Carlos Villaneuva in the 23rd minute
and Jason Roberts eight minutes after half-time. With Chelsea
operating well within capacity, however, had either gone in it is
likely that order would have been restored at the other end. It takes
a lot more than a bit of rain and a blast of wind from the north to
trouble Chelsea. It takes a lot more than Blackburn Rovers, too.

Blackburn Rovers (4-2-3-1): P Robinson 9 - D Simpson 5, Z
Khizanishvili 5, R Nelsen 5, M Olsson 5 - V Grella 5, S Warnock 6 - C
Villanueva 5, K Andrews 5, M G Pedersen 6 - J Roberts 5. Substitutes:
A Mokoena 5 (for Grella, 44min), M Derbyshire 5 (for Andrews, 46), R
Fowler (for Roberts, 76). Not used: J Brown, C Samba, Tugay Kerimoglu,
K Treacy. Next: Sunderland (h).

Chelsea (4-1-4-1): P Cech 9 - J Bosingwa 8, Alex 7, J Terry 7, W
Bridge 7 - J O Mikel 7 - S Kalou 6, Deco 5, F Lampard 7, F Malouda 7 -
N Anelka 7. Substitutes: J Belletti (for Kalou, 61min 6), P Ferreira
(for Deco, 90). Not used: C Cudicini, B Ivanovic, F Di Santo, S
Sinclair, Mineiro. Next: West Bromwich Albion (a).


-------------------------------------------------------------


Telegraph:


Nicolas Anelka double sends Chelsea back to top of the Premier League

Blackburn Rovers (0) 0 Chelsea (1) 2

Apres le deluge, Le Sulk. Following a monsoon that almost forced an
abandonment, the famously moody Nicolas Anelka struck twice, once
unintentionally, once brilliantly, to propel Chelsea back in front of
this compelling title race. In setting a Premier League record of nine
successive away wins, Chelsea also confirmed the character and
technical class in their ranks.

When conditions are so atrocious underfoot, when the ball slows so
unexpectedly, the better players come to the fore, rather than the
poorer. The rain, descending with all the force and relentlessness of
Niagara Falls, was not a leveller here, far from it. An adhesive first
touch and balance were vital and in Anelka and Frank Lampard, Chelsea
boasted technically superior players to anyone in Paul Ince's
hard-working but limited side.

At the end of a weekend when Arsenal and Liverpool both prevailed, at
a time when Manchester United can field so many outstanding
individuals, Chelsea reminded all their title rivals why they must be
feared. No Didier Drogba. No Joe Cole. No Ricardo Carvalho. No Michael
Ballack. No Ashley Cole. No problem.

Rovers could point to their own absentees, notably Roque Santa Cruz
and Benni McCarthy, but Chelsea's thoroughbreds won at a canter. But
for some terrific saves by Paul Robinson, reviving memories of the
shot-stopping form that first brought him England recognition, Chelsea
could have declared at the interval.

Ince railed at Chelsea's assistant coach, Ray Wilkins, for suggesting
in the build-up that Rovers might be "aggressive'', sentiments which
lit Ince's fuse (never the longest item). Blackburn were not in the
least bit overly combative here, both sets of players mainly showing a
duty of care in the tackle on such a dangerous surface.

Luiz Felipe Scolari refused to talk afterwards, saving his breath for
the 60 candles on his birthday cake and also smarting over how his
comments about booking a hotel in Rome for the Champions League final
had apparently been misconstrued. The Brazilian certainly has
reservations with the English media now, and has taken a fortnight's
vow of silence. It's like having Jose Mourinho back.

Scolari has been such a force for good in English, making Chelsea more
attractive and earning praise for his restrained response to
controversial refereeing decisions, that his impersonation of a
Trappist monk, however brief, is disappointing.

Anyway, his players' feet did the talking for him on Sunday. Rovers
could have been a goal and a man down within 90 seconds. When Keith
Andrews played the ball back blind to Robinson, the Blackburn
midfielder had not sensed Anelka was lurking.

The Frenchman intercepted the ball, and dragged it around Robinson,
the goal opening up. The keeper clearly caught Anelka, who stumbled
on, eschewing the cynical reaction of finding the floor as many others
would have. Anelka impressively tried to keep his footing, but
eventually did fall to the sodden soil. Chelsea were understandably
aggrieved that Chris Foy did not award a penalty and dismiss Robinson.

Lucky to be reprieved, Robinson enjoyed an extraordinary first half,
denying Chelsea time after time. Headers from Anelka and John Obi
Mikel were pushed away. So was a Lampard special. While Robinson
stopped Chelsea, rain almost stopped play. Foy eventually received
word from the fourth official that the Met Office predicted a dry
second half.

Through the raindrops, moments of brief hope could be spotted for
Rovers. Petr Cech repelled Carlos Villanueva's shot and then kept an
inswinging Morten Gamst Pedersen corner. Back came Chelsea but still
Robinson stood firm. Anelka, dressed more for a night on Everest than
an afternoon at Ewood, rounded Ryan Nelsen and unleashed a powerful
shot that Robinson dealt with. Shortly afterwards, Lampard was
thwarted by Robinson.

But the dam had to break. Six minutes from half-time, with the rain
finally easing, Jose Bosingwa drilled in an ambitious shot which
glanced off Anelka's thigh and wrong-footed Robinson, who was already
appealing for a perceived handing offence by Anelka as the ball rolled
across the line.

Foy signalled a goal, and was castigated by the Rovers faithful for
the remainder of the match. Blackburn's case was rather undermined by
the reality that Robinson should not have been on the pitch anyway,
and that Anelka did appear to make legitimate contact with the ball.

Stirred up, Rovers players responded with greater adventure after the
break, although Ince stuck with his 4-2-3-1 formation. Matt Derbyshire
arrived, bringing some more enterprise, but he was used in midfield,
leaving Jason Roberts a largely lonely figure. Roberts did manage to
turn John Terry but Cech ended any hope of an equaliser.

Blackburn's dreams of parity were completely extinguished midway
through the half when Lampard cleverly ushered in Anelka. Robinson
darted out, spreading himself, and blocking out most of the goal. To
beat the keeper, Anelka's response needed to be of the highest order.
It was. His left foot dinked the ball over Robinson, echoing the work
of two other exquisite executioners, Fernando Torres in the Euro 2008
final and Kenny Dalglish in the 1978 European Cup final.

Ince, typically defiant, tried to claw something back, pushing
Pedersen more central and sending on Robbie Fowler but the 33-year-old
inevitably lacked menace on his own upfront with Roberts removed and
Derbyshire too deep. Santa Cruz cannot return soon enough and the word
within Ewood is that the Paraguayan target-man is close to fitness.

The game all but won, Chelsea still threatened a third. Lampard fired
in a free-kick that Robinson, stretching out a finger-tip, somehow
managed to divert on to the bar and over. Robinson can take some pride
from his display but all the points were deservedly Chelsea's.

Apres le deluge, Le Sulk. Following a monsoon that almost forced an
abandonment, the famously moody Nicolas Anelka struck twice, once
unintentionally, once brilliantly, to propel Chelsea back in front of
this compelling title race. In setting a Premier League record of nine
successive away wins, Chelsea also confirmed the character and
technical class in their ranks.

When conditions are so atrocious underfoot, when the ball slows so
unexpectedly, the better players come to the fore, rather than the
poorer. The rain, descending with all the force and relentlessness of
Niagara Falls, was not a leveller here, far from it. An adhesive first
touch and balance were vital and in Anelka and Frank Lampard, Chelsea
boasted technically superior players to anyone in Paul Ince's
hard-working but limited side.

At the end of a weekend when Arsenal and Liverpool both prevailed, at
a time when Manchester United can field so many outstanding
individuals, Chelsea reminded all their title rivals why they must be
feared. No Didier Drogba. No Joe Cole. No Ricardo Carvalho. No Michael
Ballack. No Ashley Cole. No problem.

Rovers could point to their own absentees, notably Roque Santa Cruz
and Benni McCarthy, but Chelsea's thoroughbreds won at a canter. But
for some terrific saves by Paul Robinson, reviving memories of the
shot-stopping form that first brought him England recognition, Chelsea
could have declared at the interval.

Ince railed at Chelsea's assistant coach, Ray Wilkins, for suggesting
in the build-up that Rovers might be "aggressive'', sentiments which
lit Ince's fuse (never the longest item). Blackburn were not in the
least bit overly combative here, both sets of players mainly showing a
duty of care in the tackle on such a dangerous surface.

Luiz Felipe Scolari refused to talk afterwards, saving his breath for
the 60 candles on his birthday cake and also smarting over how his
comments about booking a hotel in Rome for the Champions League final
had apparently been misconstrued. The Brazilian certainly has
reservations with the English media now, and has taken a fortnight's
vow of silence. It's like having Jose Mourinho back.

Scolari has been such a force for good in English, making Chelsea more
attractive and earning praise for his restrained response to
controversial refereeing decisions, that his impersonation of a
Trappist monk, however brief, is disappointing.

Anyway, his players' feet did the talking for him on Sunday. Rovers
could have been a goal and a man down within 90 seconds. When Keith
Andrews played the ball back blind to Robinson, the Blackburn
midfielder had not sensed Anelka was lurking.

The Frenchman intercepted the ball, and dragged it around Robinson,
the goal opening up. The keeper clearly caught Anelka, who stumbled
on, eschewing the cynical reaction of finding the floor as many others
would have. Anelka impressively tried to keep his footing, but
eventually did fall to the sodden soil. Chelsea were understandably
aggrieved that Chris Foy did not award a penalty and dismiss Robinson.

Lucky to be reprieved, Robinson enjoyed an extraordinary first half,
denying Chelsea time after time. Headers from Anelka and John Obi
Mikel were pushed away. So was a Lampard special. While Robinson
stopped Chelsea, rain almost stopped play. Foy eventually received
word from the fourth official that the Met Office predicted a dry
second half.

Through the raindrops, moments of brief hope could be spotted for
Rovers. Petr Cech repelled Carlos Villanueva's shot and then kept an
inswinging Morten Gamst Pedersen corner. Back came Chelsea but still
Robinson stood firm. Anelka, dressed more for a night on Everest than
an afternoon at Ewood, rounded Ryan Nelsen and unleashed a powerful
shot that Robinson dealt with. Shortly afterwards, Lampard was
thwarted by Robinson.

But the dam had to break. Six minutes from half-time, with the rain
finally easing, Jose Bosingwa drilled in an ambitious shot which
glanced off Anelka's thigh and wrong-footed Robinson, who was already
appealing for a perceived handing offence by Anelka as the ball rolled
across the line.

Foy signalled a goal, and was castigated by the Rovers faithful for
the remainder of the match. Blackburn's case was rather undermined by
the reality that Robinson should not have been on the pitch anyway,
and that Anelka did appear to make legitimate contact with the ball.

Stirred up, Rovers players responded with greater adventure after the
break, although Ince stuck with his 4-2-3-1 formation. Matt Derbyshire
arrived, bringing some more enterprise, but he was used in midfield,
leaving Jason Roberts a largely lonely figure. Roberts did manage to
turn John Terry but Cech ended any hope of an equaliser.

Blackburn's dreams of parity were completely extinguished midway
through the half when Lampard cleverly ushered in Anelka. Robinson
darted out, spreading himself, and blocking out most of the goal. To
beat the keeper, Anelka's response needed to be of the highest order.
It was. His left foot dinked the ball over Robinson, echoing the work
of two other exquisite executioners, Fernando Torres in the Euro 2008
final and Kenny Dalglish in the 1978 European Cup final.

Ince, typically defiant, tried to claw something back, pushing
Pedersen more central and sending on Robbie Fowler but the 33-year-old
inevitably lacked menace on his own upfront with Roberts removed and
Derbyshire too deep. Santa Cruz cannot return soon enough and the word
within Ewood is that the Paraguayan target-man is close to fitness.

The game all but won, Chelsea still threatened a third. Lampard fired
in a free-kick that Robinson, stretching out a finger-tip, somehow
managed to divert on to the bar and over. Robinson can take some pride
from his display but all the points were deservedly Chelsea's.


------------------------------------------------------


Independent:


Chelsea splash out to swamp Rovers

Blackburn Rovers 0 Chelsea 2

By Ian Herbert

Chelsea don't quite walk on water at present but they can glide across
a Lancashire swamp on this evidence and that does not augur well for
those who had hoped that events in Rome last week implied some kind of
leak in their structure.

The sight of them emerging early yesterday afternoon into the sheeting
rain carried across Ewood Park by a chill north wind, all but one of
their non-English contingent wrapped in black woolly gloves, suggested
some trepidation and so did Ray Wilkins when he said, before the
match, that "this game is going to be one of aggression because that's
what Blackburn are about with Paul [Ince] as their manager".

Ducks to water best describes what followed from Chelsea, who were
back ahead of Liverpool at the top of the pile on goal difference last
night, with 10-goal Nicolas Anelka top of the league's scorers for
good measure. Paul Ince left Ewood Park a disgruntled man, demanding
that Wilkins "get his facts right", having made his feelings known to
him in the technical area about the "garbage" he considered his
pre-match comments to have been. "Of course I was a physical player
but also you don't play for the teams I played for if you are just a
physical player," he said.

But no altercation between former England captains can disguise the
story of the day – Chelsea's buoyancy on a pitch so waterlogged as the
rain lashed down that the fourth official asked Blackburn officials
for a short-term weather forecast as the first half drew to a close.
It was not the kind of effortless control which has helped Chelsea put
better sides than Blackburn to the sword. Only Florent Malouda, the
one without the gloves, and Frank Lampard commanded the conditions
with any authority. But there was a resolve which made up for the
"hurt" as Wilkins described it with which Chelsea left Rome after
Wednesday's 3-1 defeat. Ince joked he had suggested at half-time that
referee Chris Foy "call it off" and he probably got it right,
considering Chelsea's domination until then. There is no better time
to play Chelsea than when they are splashing around a pitch, even
Lampard leaving the ball behind, passes coming up short in water and
every back-pass a danger. But Blackburn would have been humiliated
without the presence of Paul Robinson, a man who is beginning to float
again at Blackburn.

Twice in the first half, Robinson saved expertly with his feet after
Malouda had floated chances up from the puddles. First Anelka was
denied, then John Obi Mikel at the far post. "It's nice to see him
back," Wilkins said last night. But Anelka, gifted perhaps the most
elementary hat-trick in Premier League history at Sunderland last
week, is on the kind of run of luck which made Chelsea's opener
inevitable. A 30-yard shot fired in by Jose Bosingwa, five minutes
before the break, rolled over the goal-line off his thigh and if
Robinson had not been so busy protesting that Anelka had handled it,
he might actually have scooped it out of the mud in time.

There was something elemental about Anelka's second, too – Lampard
splashing into a challenge with Zurab Khizanishvili to squirt a ball
through which the Frenchman slotted home. He would have had his second
successive league hat-trick had not Robinson saved again with his foot
after Lampard put him through three minutes from time. "It's not his
game to play up there on his own and bring people into the game and
hold the ball up but he's worked very hard at that aspect of his
game," Wilkins said of Anelka. The contribution is all the more
valuable considering Didier Drogba's slow recuperation from the knee
injury sustained at Cluj in September. Drogba, Wilkins revealed, is
"still not quite feeling good enough to come back into the fold."

Where once they offered resistance, Blackburn now offer the elite
sides too much charity. Vince Grella's ill-advised backpass inside
five minutes took Anelka around Robinson and there was a suspicion
that the keeper's trailing leg took him down. Robinson also pushed a
Lampard shot brilliantly around his right-hand post.

Cech saved brilliantly in either half, pushing Carlos Villanueva's
right-foot shot over the top and smothering after Jason Roberts took
down a Pedersen chip, spun and shot. But the Blackburn manager finds
himself a point off the relegation spots in this most fluid of
leagues. Scolari's views, on his 60th birthday, were not made clear
but fortified by a glass of champagne and some cake with his players
on Saturday evening, he was back in London with harmony renewed last
night.

Goals: Anelka (40) 0-1, Anelka (68) 0-2.

Blackburn Rovers (4-5-1) Robinson; Simpson, Nelsen, Khizanishvili,
Olsson; Villanueva, Andrews (Derbyshire, h-t) Warnock, Grella
(Mokoena, 44) Pedersen; Roberts (Fowler, 76). Substitutes not used:
Brown (gk), Samba, Tugay, Treacy.

Chelsea (4-1-4-1) Cech; Bosingwa, Alex, Terry, Bridge; Mikel; Kalou
(Belletti, 61), Deco (Ferreira, 90) Lampard, Malouda; Anelka.
Substitutes not used: Cudicini (gk), Ivanovic, Di Santo, Sinclair,
Mineiro.

Referee: C Foy (Merseyside).

Booked: Blackburn Warnock, Simpson; Chelsea Malouda.

Man of the match: Robinson.

Attendance: 20,670.


------------------------------------------------------


Guardian:


Blackburn Rovers 0
Chelsea 2 Anelka 40, Anelka 68

Tim Rich at Ewood Park

As someone whose hissy fits have matched any thrown by Joan Crawford
or Mariah Carey, a November rainstorm in Blackburn is hardly a place
you would expect Nicolas Anelka to thrive.

These days, however, the Frenchman is far from the caricature of a man
who would flounce off to the dressing room at the hint of a misplaced
pass. Last Tuesday night, after another deluge in Rome, his captain,
John Terry, had accused Chelsea of "lacking character and attitude".
The rain may have followed them from the edge of the Apennines to the
heart of the Pennines but character and attitude were evident
everywhere in a way seldom suggested by the 3-1 defeat in the Stadio
Olimpico.

Having denied reports that they plan to abandon Stamford Bridge for a
new stadium in Battersea, Chelsea endured the kind of conditions they
would face if they relocated to the Norfolk Broads.

On a surface that resembled a fen, they hauled themselves to the
summit of the Premier League, level on points with Liverpool but
massively ahead on goal difference. Perhaps more significantly in the
longer term, Luiz Felipe Scolari celebrated his 60th birthday - an age
at which Sir Alex Ferguson believes a manager is close to his peak -
eight points clear of Manchester United.

A pitch on which every first-half pass stopped as if the ball were
fitted with anti-skid brakes and a back-pass was a form of Russian
roulette ought to have acted as a leveller. Yet the only time
Chelsea's control was threatened was shortly after the interval when
conditions had eased enough to prevent an abandonment. Then, Frank
Lampard burst through a thin defensive screen on the edge of the
Blackburn area, throwing up a spray of water as he did so, and Anelka
not only timed his run perfectly, he kept his feet to chip the ball
beautifully over Paul Robinson's body for the second and decisive
goal.

It had been in Moscow rain as hard if less cold than this that Anelka
had squandered the penalty that cost Chelsea the European Cup. His
response in the prolonged absence of Didier Drogba - whose injured
knee meant he was unfit to travel to Lancashire or share champagne and
birthday cake with Scolari - has been to score 11 times this season.

By any logical method of accounting, he might have had five at Ewood
Park. Robinson, showing the form that suggests his international
career may not be done, made two reaction saves from Anelka's head in
the first half and then spread himself when he was clean through to
deny the Frenchman a second successive hat-trick.

And yet, Blackburn might have lost their goalkeeper in the opening
exchanges. As Robinson slid in feet-first to meet Anelka, his leg
caught the striker who attempted to remain upright before going over.

That slight delay may have influenced the referee, Chris Foy, but
while Anelka has a reputation for many things diving is not one of
them. Like an umpire facing a batsman who walks, this only increases
the pressure on a referee, although it paled alongside Foy's dilemma
whether to continue the match as the rain sluiced down. It was decided
by the fourth official asking for a short-term weather forecast that
correctly predicted no significant rain after the interval.

Chelsea went into it ahead after receiving the kind of fortune they
had largely been denied. Jose Boswinga's shot was hard, speculative
and delivered from closer to the centre circle than the 18-yard line
but it struck Anelka - whether on the thigh or gloved hand was not
entirely clear - deflected past Robinson and crawled over the line.

Under Mark Hughes, Blackburn possessed a reputation for a
bloody-minded attitude to the bigger clubs that has been largely
absent under Paul Ince. Arsenal, Manchester United and now Chelsea
have all won at Ewood with some comfort and without a victory since
mid-September when they won at a St James' Park in a state of civil
war, Ince rounded on the Chelsea assistant manager, Ray Wilkins.

Wilkins, in part appointed because of his silky diplomatic skills, had
suggested before kick-off that: "Chelsea would have to put up with a
game of aggression because that is what Blackburn are about with Paul
as their manager."

"For him to come out with that garbage that we would try to put them
on their arses is rubbish," said Ince. "We were not that today and I
told him in no uncertain terms to get his facts right."

No, Blackburn were not over-physical and they were not over-aggressive
but, unlike Anelka, it might have been better had they played up to
their reputation.

Man of the match: Paul Robinson

Chelsea would probably have won anyway but without Paul Robinson,
Blackburn would have lost by a landslide

Best moment: It began with a Deco back-flick, continued with a Lampard
pass and was finished by a searing shot from Anelka saved at full
stretch by Robinson


----------------------------------------------------


Mail:


Blackburn 0 Chelsea 2: Big Phil celebrates while Butch and 'The Guvnor' clash

By Matt Barlow

Luiz Felipe Scolari nipped straight off to get dry and celebrate his
60th birthday on top of the Barclays Premier League, leaving his
mild-mannered sidekick Ray Wilkins to spark an unlikely row with Paul
Ince.

Wilkins had wound up Ince with his pre-match comments about
Blackburn's aggressive style and the Rovers manager snapped at the
final whistle, turning to the Chelsea bench to deliver his own
thoughts on the matter.

He had just stood on the touchline through a freezing downpour and
seen his team sunk by two Nicolas Anelka goals.

It was a sixth successive defeat for Rovers and he was not in the best of moods.

'I was a physical character as a player but all the teams I've managed
play football,' fumed Ince.

'For him to come out with the garbage he came out with before the game
about trying to put them on their a****s and that we're overphysical -
but we weren't like that today.

'We played some decent football and I just said to him next time
you're going to say something make sure you get your facts right.'

Before the game, Wilkins had predicted 'a battle from the first
whistle' at Ewood Park, claiming any team of Ince's would be
'aggressive'.

After the match, his language was similar: 'A lot of people around the
country would have been saying that's a tough game at Blackburn in
difficult conditions. Will they fancy it, especially after the result
in midweek? But you could see from the result and the performance we
were well up for it.'

John Terry had criticised Chelsea's attitude during last week's 3-1
defeat away to Roma but it could not be questioned in Lancashire, even
if six of their outfield players took the field wearing gloves.

They stuck impressively to their task when the driving winter rain
threatened to have the game abandoned at half-time, when the officials
asked for a weather forecast.

'I told him to call it off,' joked Ince, when asked what he had said
to referee Chris Foy at half time. But Ince was serious when he
pointed out: 'It was getting a bit farcical in
the middle of the park.'

Passes were sticking in puddles and players aquaplaning on their backs
as the weather was at its worst just before the interval.

Scolari stood on the touchline with the hood of his coat up as the
rain poured down on him. It was a long way from his home town of
Porto Alegre.

It stopped after the break and Scolari would have been cheered by the
spirit of his team.

Arsenal wilt on ugly trips like this but Chelsea had the look of
champions as they
adapted to the rain.

John Mikel Obi, awful in Rome, screened the back four brilliantly. He
stood strong and broke down attacks and distributed the ball simply,
without a trace of the casual style which cost him in Italy.

Petr Cech did everything you could ask of your goalkeeper in such grim
conditions, dominating in the air and spotting the danger quickly if
anything was threaded through
on the deck.

Cech made one outstanding save in the first half, unfurling his huge
frame to reach a left-footer from Carlos Villaneuva, which had looked
destined for the top corner.

In the second half, he made a series of brave blocks to frustrate
Jason Roberts. The best was an astute decision and a dash from the
goal-line to spread himself and
smother a shot after Roberts had turned Terry inside the area.

Paul Robinson, meanwhile, kept Blackburn in the game in the first half
although a different referee might have sent him off after just five
minutes.

He mistimed a challenge on Anelka and sent the Chelsea striker sliding
head-first across the turf.

It looked like a foul, a penalty and therefore a red card but,
amazingly, referee Foy waved play on.

Robinson made one fantastic save from Anelka low to his left and beat
away a couple of efforts zipped across the slippery surface by Frank
Lampard.

When he was beaten in the 40th minute, it was laced with luck. Jose
Bosingwa unleashed an ambitious effort from 40 yards which was flying
wide when it hit Anelka
and wrong-footed Robinson.

It trickled so slowly through the sodden turf that the goalkeeper
might have been able to recover and save it had he not been appealing
so enthusiastically for handball against Anelka. His appeal was
ignored.

Chelsea took the lead and rarely looked like letting it slip. Anelka
grabbed the second with a neat finish clipped over Robinson's dive
after Lampard had won possession deep in Blackburn territory and
tucked a pass into his feet.

Ince wanted a penalty for a pull on the shirt of Morten Gamst Pedersen
by Bosingwa but knew he was pushing it after the Robinson let-off.

Chelsea could have had more. Lampard rattled the bar from long range
and Robinson denied Anelka a hattrick with a save in the last minute.

But two was enough to take them back to the top of the table and equal
a club and Premier League record of nine successive away wins.

They have won all six this season and conceded only one goal - a
deflected Robinho free-kick at Manchester City.

Scolari's cake and champagne will have tasted divine.

BLACKBURN: Simpson 5, Khizanishvili 6, Nelsen 6, Olsson 5; Grella 4
(Mokoena 44min, 6), Warnock 7; Villaneuva 5, Andrews 5 (Derbyshire 46,
6), Pedersen 6; Roberts 7 (Fowler 81).
Booked: Warnock, Simpson.

CHELSEA (4-3-3): Cech 7; Bosingwa 7, Alex 7, Terry 6, Bridge 6;
Lampard 7, Mikel 7, Deco 6 (Ferreira 90); Kalou 5 (Belletti 65, 6),
Anelka 7, Malouda 7.
Booked: Malouda.

Man of the Match: Paul Robinson.
Referee: Chris Foy.


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