Blues sweet success over Toffees
Written By: Robert Halter
Chelsea faced Everton in an early evening Saturday kick off at Stamford Bridge as duties resumed for the Blues and Toffees following a two weeks break for international football. First it was the Premier League before Everton entertained Chelsea in the fourth round of the Carling Cup. After a perfect home start in the league with four straight wins, the Blues were on a roll and looked to make ground on Manchester United, who drew at Liverpool earlier in the day but it was the other team from Merseyside, who stood in their way. Louis Saha tested Petr Cech for the first time on ten minutes but the Chelsea keeper kept the ball under control. Although it was Chelsea that forged ahead on the half hour mark after Juan Mata lofted the ball over and from Ashley Cole’s cross from the left side of the area, Daniel Sturridge made no mistake by guiding his diving header into the back of the net. On the stroke of half time Chelsea struck again after Seamus Coleman had fouled Cole and from a Frank Lampard free kick, captain John Terry got the touch to divert his header past Tim Howard to give the Blues a two goal advantage at the break. The Toffees were the fastest out of the blocks for the second half and Leon Osman went close when he steered a low drive against the outside of Cech’s left hand post. It was however the Blues who went further ahead after Didier Drogba’s pass put Mata in the clear, whose low cross found Ramires unmarked and from close range he toe poked the ball in between Leighton Baines to put Chelsea three goals up but Ramires’s glory was short lived as he was helped off the field injured as a result of the goal. An inspired substitution by David Moyes saw Apostolos Vellios come straight on the field and score, as after replacing Saha, Vellios stuck out his right foot to divert Royston Drenthe’s low cross past Cech in the eightieth minute but the goal was no more than a consolation for the Toffees as they trailed 3-1. Lampard struck a shot at Howard towards the end and with the result never in doubt, Chelsea remained third in the table, a point adrift of second placed Manchester United while trailing league leaders Manchester City by three points.