morning papers hull away 3-0

The TimesOctober 30, 2008
Hull City have their wings clipped by classy ChelseaHull City 0 Chelsea 3
Oliver Kay
The noise that could be heard on the banks of the Humber last night was not that of the Hull City bubble bursting but of the Chelsea bandwagon roaring into motion once more. It required the most elegant of kick-starts from Frank Lampard, whose third-minute goal was described by Luiz Felipe Scolari as one of the best he has witnessed in his career, but, once on the road, Chelsea were able to leave their blues behind them.
A first home league defeat in 4½ years, inflicted by Liverpool on Sunday, has left a dent in Chelsea’s armour and indeed their pride, but, away from the erstwhile fortress of Stamford Bridge, they are equally formidable. This was their fifth win in as many away matches in the Barclays Premier League under Scolari and, given that it came against a resilient Hull team whom they led only on goal difference at the start of play, it should not be underestimated.
This had all the makings of a difficult night for Chelsea, but, if second-half goals from Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda allowed them to relax, it was Lampard’s exquisite strike that was the abiding memory of their evening, a floated shot from the corner of the penalty area with his weaker left foot. Had it been another player, it might have been tempting to call it an overhit cross, but not Lampard. “He’s the only player with the quality to score this goal,” Scolari said. “He had the intelligence to see the goalkeeper and then the touch to score the goal. It was one of the best goals I have seen in football.”
Given that Scolari, in his time in charge of the Brazil and Portugal national teams, has coached players such as Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Ronaldo and Cristiano Ronaldo, it was an almighty compliment, but the sincerity seemed to diminish slightly as the praise kept coming. Informed that five of his players had been among the 23 nominated as Fifa World Player of the Year, the Chelsea coach replied that: “My vote is for Frank.” Very laudable, but it is worth noting Scolari’s love of a superlative, particularly when he is quizzed in a foreign language.
Lampard’s goal certainly changed the complexion of the game, but Hull, after five straight wins, did not succumb until the second half, when a calamitous mix-up between Boaz Myhill and his defenders resulted in Anelka’s goal. To that point, Phil Brown’s team had fought hard, with Dean Marney competing well with Lampard in midfield, Geovanni trying to weave his magic and Daniel Cousin striking the foot of the post from 25 yards after holding off challenges from José Bosingwa, John Obi Mikel and John Terry.
For all Hull’s enthusiasm, though, the game would have been over sooner had Anelka and Malouda not taken until the second half to find their composure in front of goal. On no fewer than five occasions in the first half the France internationals found themselves with time and space to test Myhill, but their shooting was awry. Whatever their subsequent contributions, the return of Didier Drogba cannot come soon enough for Scolari.
The goal that Anelka scored, five minutes into the second half, was a gift from Myhill, who inexplicably waited on his 18-yard line to try to head away a bouncing ball. Even Anelka managed to raise a smile after nipping in to intercept and roll the ball into the unguarded net.
Malouda made it 3-0 with 15 minutes remaining, but the man who deserved the credit was Ricardo Carvalho, who set him up with the type of cross of which centre halves are not meant to be capable. The Portugal defender’s departure with a hamstring injury was the only black mark on Chelsea’s evening — that and news of Liverpool’s breakthrough at Anfield, which came through just as they were leaving the pitch.
Hull City (4-3-1-2): B Myhill — P McShane, M Turner, K Zayatte, A Dawson — D Marney (sub: R Garcia, 71min), I Ashbee, G Boateng (sub: P Halmosi, 63) — Geovanni — M King (sub: D Windass, 84), D Cousin. Substitutes not used: M Duke, B Mendy, S Ricketts, B Hughes.
Chelsea (4-1-4-1): P Cech — J Bosingwa (sub: B Ivanovic, 86), R Carvalho, J Terry, A Cole — J O Mikel — J Cole (sub: J Belletti, 54), Deco (sub: S Kalou, 78), F Lampard, F Malouda — N Anelka. Substitutes not used: C Cudicini, Alex, W Bridge, F Di Santo. Booked: J Cole.
Referee: A Marriner.
Battle of the big Phils
Phil Brown
Born: South Shields.Age: 49.Clubs played for: 4, including Hartlepool United and Bolton Wanderers.Teams managed: 3, Bolton (caretaker), Derby County and Hull City.Contract: Signed new three-year deal in August.Salary: About £1.5 million a year.
Luiz Felipe Scolari
Born: Passo Fundo, Brazil.Age: 59.Clubs played for: 4, including Caxias and Juventude.Teams managed: 16, including Kuwait, Brazil and Portugal.Contract: Agreed four-year deal in June.Salary: £5.5 million a year.
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Telegraph:
Chelsea assert their dominance over high-flying Hull CityHull City (0) 0 Chelsea (1) 3 By Oliver Brown
Andrew Marvell, late of this parish, played his part in bringing Hull to the attention of a London elite – after all, he represented the place to Parliament during the Restoration. And a where metaphysical poet led, a collection of supremely physical footballers have also dared to tread, with Hull City cutting a swathe across a succession of the capital’s clubs before Chelsea revived a semblance of London pride.
Chelsea had been right to cross the Humber with trepidation but they returned with a reminder of their dominance. Three goals, three points, and at a stroke the pain of ceding an advantage to Liverpool in the title race was erased.
The gap at the top of the Premier League has closed to a single point and perhaps the old order of the game has not been recast in the many would like to think. The last time Hull had hosted Chelsea in the league, 20 years ago, they won 3-0; their recent exploits had suggested a repeat was not inconceivable, instead the KC Stadium was silenced as the scoreline was reversed. Phil Brown and his team had endured an early day of reckoning.
But Hull reckoned without the vision of Lampard, who, in a moment of breathtaking audacity, derailed their best-laid plans within two minutes. The strength of the midfielder’s shots is well-documented, yet the goal he contrived here was altogether cuter: rushing to intercept Paul McShane’s half-hearted clearance from Florent Malouda, he set himself for a chip with his left foot and watched the ball sail beyond goalkeeper goalkeeper Boaz Myhill with perfect flight and swerve.
The execution was elegant, but one worried what Lampard might do if he scored another. This was, after all, his 99th league goal and perhaps he had prepared one of his ostentatious T-shirt tributes to the Chelsea fans – the memory of “100 goals and they are all for you,” unveiled when he reached the century mark for Chelsea against Huddersfield in the FA Cup last season, has lingered long.
Lampard, though, was only delivering a statement through the quality of his play and he again ruffled Myhill with a lethal free-kick. But Hull have not achieved their early-season parity with Chelsea for nothing; indeed, the 20 points they had taken from their first nine games matched the start Manchester United made last year en route to winning the title, and Daniel Cousin began to betray some of the attacking verve that brought them there.
The striker’s low effort from 20 yards took a slight deflection and left Petr Cech well beaten, only to bounce back from the post, before Geovanni – the free-scoring, free-wheeling Brazilian who only needs to cross the halfway line to hear the supporters’ cries of “shoot” – unleashed a long-range free-kick that bobbled awkwardly in front of Cech.
But Chelsea’s resilience under Luiz Felipe Scolari is formidable and there was scant surprise when they doubled their lead in the 50th minute, Nicolas Anelka moving in to punish nerves in the home defence. The centre-half duo of Michael Turner and Kamil Zayatte, so instrumental in Hull’s success, lapsed as they let a ball bounce between them while the Frenchman beat Myhill to the ball, steering it goalwards with ease.
Malouda, with 15 minutes left, stabbed home Carvalho’s cross to quell any remaining resistance. Chelsea had dealt Hull a humbling, a reassertion of metropolitan might.
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Independent:
Lampard brings Hull back down to earth
Hull City 0 Chelsea 3
By Jon Culley
This was the match in which Hull's dream start might have stretched the limits of imagination again with a scalp maybe to eclipse even that of Arsenal at the Emirates but Chelsea were in no mood to be part of anyone's fantasies, even those of a record Premier League crowd of almost 25,000 at the KC Stadium.
Goals by Frank Lampard, Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda gave Luiz Felipe Scolari's side an emphatic victory but had the scoreline been double or more in Chelsea's favour they would not have been flattered. Phil Brown's team deserve all the respect they have gathered so far in winning six of their opening 10 matches – as many as Chelsea at the game's start – but for all that Hull remain fifth in the table, the gulf between these sides last night was as wide as the Humber.
Their finishing apart, Chelsea played with a quality befitting of their status, with Lampard supreme at the heart of it, drawing superlative praise from Scolari afterwards, both for the speed of thought behind his goal and for the dynamism of his play throughout. "He is the best goalscoring midfield player in Europe, one of the best in the world, and I don't think there is another player who could score a goal like that," Scolari said. "He is so intelligent a player and he seems to be never tired. If he is a contender for world player of the year he gets my vote."
The goal that so excited his manager came less than three minutes into the game. There were mistakes made by the home side but it was Lampard's ability, in a split second, to weigh up an opportunity, make a decision and execute it flawlessly that made the goal, the England player's 99th in his league career, so special.
If there was an obvious culprit it was Boaz Myhill, the Hull goalkeeper, who was just too far ahead of his line to be ready for what was coming.
But then Hull, in general, seemed unprepared for their lines to be pressed so soon by swarming blue shirts and when right-back Paul McShane tackled Malouda but could not get the ball away, it was a good bet that it would run to an opponent. Lampard, ready for a return pass at the edge of the penalty area, assessed the possibilities in an instant and delivered the perfect chip beyond Myhill's reach.
It could have been the cue for the ruthless restating of intent that Chelsea wanted after the shock of losing their long unbeaten home run at Liverpool's hands at the weekend. By half-time, however, two good chances each had fallen to Malouda and Anelka and another to the returning Joe Cole, but none was taken.
Myhill redeemed himself with a fine fingertip save from one Anelka shot but Chelsea were not being decisive enough to make Hull pay.
So Hull reached the break with a chance still that they might find some way in the second 45 minutes to add another thrilling episode to their story, encouraged moreover by creating some opportunities of their own, notably when Daniel Cousin hit an upright with the fluorescently clad Petr Cech beaten, and when Geovanni had the Chelsea goalkeeper scrambling to deal with two long-range free kicks.
But to find a way back though, Hull needed first to make no further mistakes and it was in pursuit of that target that they failed miserably five minutes after the restart as Chelsea at last seized control, courtesy of a genuine gift goal. This time blame attached itself to McShane and centre-back Kamil Zayatte, who stood back in the belief that a hopeful punt out of the Chelsea half would carry through to Hull's goalkeeper only to look on in horror as it pulled up short, allowing Anelka to nip in as Myhill stumbled into the "D" and take the ball wide before rolling it into the unguarded net.
Malouda missed another chance but did score Chelsea's third 15 minutes from the end, sidefooting home from close range after Ricardo Carvalho, popping up on the left flank, supplied the pass to finish another Chelsea move of crisp passing and clever improvisation.
Only an injury late on to Carvalho, and more worries over Joe Cole, marred Chelsea's night.
Goals: Lampard (3) 0-1; Anelka (50) 0-2; Malouda (75) 0-3.
Hull City (4-1-3-2): Myhill; McShane, Turner, Zayatte, Dawson; Marney (Garcia, 71); Geovanni, Ashbee, Boateng (Halmosi, 62); King (Windass, 83), Cousin. Substitutes not used: Duke (gk), Hughes, Mendy, Ricketts.
Chelsea (4-1-4-1): Cech; Bosingwa (Ivanovic, 86), Carvalho, Terry, A Cole; Mikel; J Cole (Belletti, 53), Lampard, Malouda; Deco (Kalou, 78); Anelka. Substitutes not used: Cudicini (gk), Di Santo, Bridge, Alex.
Referee: A Marriner (West Midlands).
Booked: Chelsea J Cole; Deco.
Man of the match: Lampard.
Attendance: 24,906.
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The Guardian:
Lampard gets Chelsea back in the old routine to put Tigers in their place
Hull City 0 Chelsea 3 Lampard 3, Anelka 50, Malouda 75
Louise Taylor at the KC Stadium
The established order was restored in East Yorkshire last night but only after Hull City had given their wealthy guests an exacting work-out that is well disguised by the scoreline. These teams had started the night level on 20 points in the Champions League zone and, though Chelsea's class ultimately told as Luiz Felipe Scolari's side revived their title challenge, it was initially easy to see how Hull had claimed so many sizeable scalps of late.
Though their six-game unbeaten streak - a run featuring five wins - was always destined to end after Frank Lampard had struck with a third-minute chip to claim what Scolari described as "one of the best goals I've seen in the world," Phil Brown's side showed they have class, too.
Despite last weekend's unscheduled reverse at home to Liverpool, few would question Chelsea's quality and Scolari enthused: "Our reaction to Sunday was very good," before launching into an ode to a man whose current form is deservedly winning plaudits.
"My vote is for Frank as world player of the year," said the Brazilian, whose evening was marred only by a hamstring injury sustained by Ricardo Carvalho which could sideline the centre-half for two to three weeks. "Frank's a very intelligent player who scored a goal that maybe only he could. But he also played very well, he's the man that's never tired."
In truth if certain players had claimed that opener cynics might have questioned if they meant it. Lampard, though, knew precisely what he was doing when the ball rolled towards his left foot after Paul McShane dispossesed Florent Malouda but saw his clearance fall to a most dangerous enemy.
Spotting an opening others might have been blind to, the England midfielder had the instinct and audacity to use his first touch to chip the ball, sublimely and left- footed, sending it arcing over Brown's defence. Stunned, Boaz Myhill was caught cold and remained rooted to the spot as it dropped just inside the far post.
It was the 99th league goal by a player who can do little wrong and served as a reminder that Hull might be mortal after all. That said, Brown's side could have equalised when, spying a gap between Jose Boswinga and Ricardo Carvalho, Michael Turner threatened with a thumping header, only fractionally off target.
"Turner for England," chorused the KC in homage to their centre-half, one of the success stories of the Premier League season so far whose performances have been one of the main reasons why it was the first time in four games Myhill found himself picking the ball out of his net.
Unfortunately this was not to prove Turner's best night or even Geovanni's. Floating just behind the front two, the latter is Hull's principal creative catalyst and a player well known to Scolari, who coached him at Cruzeiro.
Chelsea's manager had doubtless told his charges all about his compatriot's dead- ball ability and Petr Cech was required to make a decent save from one of Geovanni's whipped free-kicks. Shortly afterwards Daniel Cousin came even closer to scoring when his shot from distance rebounded tantalisingly off the base of a post.
Hull's relentless quest for an equaliser was aided by a similar determination on the part of Chelsea's Boswinga and Asley Cole to overlap at every opportunity. Although Mikel John Obi frequently dropped back into what at times was effectively a back three, this penchant offered the Tigers inviting space to exploit.
The line between being commendably positive and slightly gung-ho is fine, though, and Hull were nearly caught out by a Chelsea counter-attack featuring a glorious Joe Cole pass and a ferocious drive from Nicolas Anelka which was destined for the top corner until Myhill performed heroics to tip it over.
Hull, clearly on a collective adrenaline high, worked hard to close Chelsea down but trying to second-guess Lampard and company over 90 minutes can run down the concentration reserves of even the most willing opponents.
So it proved when Boswinga swung in an innocuous cross and the hitherto reliable Turner and Kamil Zayatte went into an 'after-you' routine, letting the ball bounce embarrassingly between them and leaving Myhill to deal with it.
Anelka may not score as many goals as a striker of his consummate talents really should but he had no hesitation about pouncing on this gilt-edged opportunity. As Myhill advanced, the Frenchman teased the hapless keeper, dragging the ball round him before stroking it into the bottom corner.
Malouda, a midfielder renascent under Scolari's management, lent a flattering air to the scoreline when, arguably offside, he stretched out a boot and diverted Carvalho's cross beyond Myhill. "We caused them plenty of problems in the first half but we didn't bring our best game to the table," lamented Brown, whose spirited side will surely bounce back from this. "Chelsea are very good, though."
How they comparePrice of average terrace house
Hull: £88,215
Chelsea: £2,033,000
Main span of landmark bridge
Hull: 1410m
Chelsea: 107m
Nightlife
Hull: The cheap and cheerful Spiders is popular, thanks to its alternative music and relaxed attitude, and does a roaring trade in "parntsa larga"
Chelsea: Princes William and Harry have enjoyed many a night in London's most exclusive club, Boujis. Tipple of choice is the vodka chocolate martini
Rugby league clubs in borough
Hull: 2
Chelsea: 0
Celebrity Spotting
Hull: Daniel Bryan came third in Big Brother 2004. Pop groups Everything But the Girl and The Housemartins were founded there. Philip Larkin lived in the city, as does Norman Collier, master of the faulty microphone gag and chicken impersonator nonpareil
Chelsea: The Rolling Stones, Margaret Thatcher, Bob Marley, Freddie Mercury and Oscar Wilde all called Chelsea home. Artists and prime ministers have made way for a who's who of the haves and have yachts
Most expensive signing
Hull: Anthony Gardner £2.5m
Chelsea: Andriy Shevchenko £30m
League position October 30 1998
Hull: Twenty-fourth in Division Three: 92nd overall
Chelsea: Sixth in Premier League: Sixth overall (out of 92)
Pre-match banter
Hull: "Summatup wi' yer peas, pal? Stop mernin'. Tha'll get nowt else from us tonight"
Chelsea: "Delicious fish and chips but the guacamole was ghastly"
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Mail:
Hull 0 Chelsea 3: Lampard chips in as the Blues tough it out
By NEIL ASHTONWith Chelsea boasting five nominees for the world player of the year, Frank Lampard celebrated with an effort worthy of the award itself.Cristiano Ronaldo will eventually be crowned king, but perhaps this is the year when Lampard's fellow professionals vote the midfielder PFA player of the year for the first time in his exceptional career.
Chelsea were brisk and business-like, with Lampard the brainchild behind this systematic demolition of Phil Brown's ambitious team. Lampard's drifted effort, clipped off the laces of his left boot after just three minutes, was exhilarating as well as exquisite, stunning in its execution and a statement of intent from a team beaten at Stamford Bridge for the first time in 86 attempts last weekend.They were hurting, stung by the way Xabi Alonso's deflected effort for Liverpool knocked them off their perch at the top of the Barclays Premier League. What a response. Lampard is 99 league goals not out, scored during spells with Swansea (on loan), West Ham and Chelsea. The century could well be secured against Sunderland on Saturday.Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari said: 'It is the best goal I have seen in my football career. Only Lampard could score that goal. He is an intelligent player. Every game you know how he will play. He is never tired. 'I don't see any player as good as Frank. It is fantastic for a coach to have a player like him. My vote for world player is for Frank.'Scolari has warmed to Lampard, but the team scored two more, when Nicolas Anelka pounced on a defensive mistake in the 50th minute and then a third, ultimately dispatched with embarrassing ease by the outstretched leg of Florent Malouda.
This was a different Chelsea, relying on resilience and some of the more praiseworthy habits this team picked up under Jose Mourinho to match Hull for commitment and courage.They returned to London with casualties, notably Ricardo Carvalho after he left the field with a thigh strain after a gritty battle with Marlon King and Daniel Cousin. Scolari's side set about them, getting in their faces and preparing for hand-to-hand combat against a team with top order ambitions of their own.
They were ruthless. It had to be that way, especially whenever Cousin or Geovanni were involved. Cousin's shot beat Petr Cech for pace, rebounding off the base of the post and then Geovanni teed up a free kick from 35 yards that forced Cech to fist the ball away for a corner.
It was cup-tie stuff, back to the good, old days when Lampard and Terry would tear off their shirts at the final whistle and thump their chests in front of the travelling supporters. They were prepared for the onslaught, with Hull piling bodies forward in search of an equaliser. Cavalier perhaps, but captivating all the same.'There was a gulf at times,' admitted Tigers boss Phil Brown. 'It might look like a drubbing, but we have two days now to prepare for Old Trafford and I have told the lads that if anyone doesn't think we can get anything there they should not bother coming in.'Great stuff from the Hull manager, clearly irritable after the team's first defeat since August. Chelsea came prepared, with lessons learned from last Sunday's defeat against Liverpool. Perhaps they needed some steel, a spine to complement the unquestionable skill that is found in every area of this super-strength team.
They finished them off when Anelka took advantage of an uncharacteristic mistake between Michael Turner and Kamil Zayatte, Hull's central defensive pairing, to score a second in the 50th minute.They hesitated, allowing Anelka to dispossess Boaz Myhill on the edge of the area to make certain of all three points for Chelsea when he clipped the ball into an empty net. 'The second goal was Myhill's mistake,' added Brown. 'He has made his apologies in the dressing room, but that is too late for me.'Brown wants qualification for Europe in their first season and a top eight finish to underline his burgeoning reputation. Instead, they fell apart after Anelka's strike. Hull encouraged Chelsea to attack, allowing Carvalho to play a neat pass down the left, sending a curved ball into the path of Malouda and the Chelsea winger scored from close range.
A classy finish. Just not world class.

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Sun:
From ANTONY KASTRINAKIS at KC Stadium CLASS wins titles and Frank Lampard has it in abundance.
The way the England ace set up Chelsea’s triumph last night took your breath away.
Lampard’s third-minute opener was straight out of the Samba stylebook — and one that left his Brazilian boss Big Phil Scolari hailing him as the world’s best player.
Picking up a loose ball on the edge of the box, Lamps mesmerised Bo Myhill with a left-foot chip that nestled in at the far post.
It capped a great night for the Blues midfielder, who was named as one of the contenders for world player of the year along with team-mates John Terry, Deco, Michael Ballack and Didier Drogba.
Lampard, 30, who was runner-up for the prestigious gong in 2005, showed last night why he is still one of the world’s finest.
Scolari said: “My vote for World Player of the Year is for Frank. Only he could score that goal.
“It’s one of the best goals I’ve seen. There’s only one player with this quality to score that goal.
“To have that intelligence to see the goalkeeper and to finish like that, I think it’s one of the best I’ve seen in my football career.
“He’s an intelligent player. I don’t see any player the same as Frank — it’s a fantastic for a coach to have a player like him.”
Yet Lamps — and Chelsea — have another vital ingredient for success. Character. Just three days after their devastating loss to Liverpool they showed plenty of that, too.
High-flying Hull were meant to be no pushovers and gave Chelsea a run for their money for 50 minutes.
It was then that keeper Myhill’s clanger ended the contest. For some reason, he tried to head the ball ahead of Kamil Zayatte but completely missed it allowing Nicolas Anelka to steal in and score.
The Tigers were finally tamed and it was no surprise when Florent Malouda put the gloss on an emphatic display 15 minutes from time, tapping home Ricardo Carvalho’s square ball.
Scolari said: “After the defeat against Liverpool we had a good response. Now we have to try to put great pressure on other clubs.
“I like Hull, they’re difficult to beat. But after we scored in the third minute it was difficult for them.”
Yet Hull have plenty of reasons to smile. Just 12 months ago there was a huge gulf between them and Chelsea — Hull were 18th in the Championship while the Blues were second in the top flight.
Chelsea had also mauled them 4-0 in the Carling Cup. This time round, Hull kicked off level on points with their illustrious rivals — and gave as good as they got until Myhill’s clanger.
Phil Brown’s side are riding on the crest of a wave and Chelsea arrived a wounded animal after losing their 86-game unbeaten home league record to Rafa Benitez’s men.
Tigers boss Brown said: “There was a gulf at times, 3-0 might look like a drubbing but if we’d minimised the mistakes and maximised the performance it might have been different.
“We needed to bring our best games to the table and cut out mistakes and we didn’t do that.”
Lampard’s brilliant strike was the first goal Hull had conceded in five hours and 12 minutes. And they tried to react when Michael Turner headed Andy Dawson’s corner just over.
Joe Cole could have made it two on 12 minutes but volleyed straight at Myhill then Lamps had a try from 40 yards with a free-kick but it fizzed wide.
The Tigers showed their teeth though. Striker Daniel Cousin should have put them level after 22 minutes when he turned Terry and struck Petr Cech’s upright.
Brazilian hotshot Geovanni then had a blast from fully 45 yards that Cech pushed away for a corner.
But five minutes after the restart Myhill’s howler allowed Anelka to score into an empty net, putting Chelsea firmly in command.
Brown added: “Bo’s made his apologies in the dressing room but apologies are too late for me.
“We’ve got two days now to prepare for going to Old Trafford and I’ve told the lads that if they think we can’t get anything there they shouldn’t bother coming in.”
Chelsea’s injury woes struck again, though, with Scolari set to miss Carvalho for three weeks with what seemed a hamstring problem.
And Joe Cole, just back from a three-week lay-off with an ankle problem, limped off early in the second half as he felt a twinge.
Scolari added: “I don’t know the situation with Ricardo but it could be a minimum of three weeks. Joe maybe felt something with his ankle.”
The last word should be about Lamps and no-one put it better than Brown who said: “He’s a bloody good player isn’t he! End of story.”
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Mirror:
Hull City 0-3 Chelsea Chelsea put high-flying Hull in their place to get back to winning ways in the Barclays Premier League tonight.
Hull had gone into the game at the KC Stadium trailing the Blues only on goal difference but a stunning strike from Frank Lampard after just two minutes established superiority.
The Tigers hit the post through Daniel Cousin but Nicolas Anelka pounced on a mistake and Florent Malouda struck from close range to settle the contest.
It was the perfect response from Chelsea after suffering a first defeat of the season at the hands of Liverpool on Sunday.
Hull, who had won their previous four games, battled hard but in the end were well beaten by a Chelsea side whose extra class was evident.
Home boss Phil Brown had named the same side for the fifth game in succession but their soaring confidence ultimately counted for little has Chelsea handed them a reality check.
Chelsea, lifted by the return of Joe Cole, were soon into their stride as Lampard gave them an early lead with a delicate left-footed chip which oozed class.
The England midfielder displayed perfect technique to clip over the stranded Boaz Myhill after Paul McShane had dispossessed Florent Malouda but failed to clear.
It was his 99th career league goal and lifted the Blues after the shock of the Liverpool loss.
Hull, after conceding for the first time in four games, tried to respond through Geovanni but the Brazilian was denied a free-kick after running into Ricardo Carvalho.
Lampard tried his luck again with a shot from a free-kick 30 yards out but could not find the target.
Marlon King looked to have Hull's first real chance but was flagged offside as he shot at Petr Cech.
Yet the hosts were inches away from an equaliser after 22 minutes as Cousin's low shot from 20 yards took a slight deflection and beat Cech, only to bounce back off the post.
Geovanni also tested Cech with a long-range free-kick but the Chelsea goalkeeper beat the ball away after it bounced awkwardly in front of him.
Hull were then forced to sit back for a spell and survived a scare as Malouda found room to shoot but fired over.
Anelka went even closer with a ferocious drive just before the break but Myhill did brilliantly to tip over.
Cech was also in action again, keeping out another Geovanni free-kick and a King header.
Chelsea doubled their lead in the 50th minute as Anelka capitalised on uncertainty in the home defence.
Michael Turner and Kamil Zayatte, so impressive in recent weeks, switched off as they allowed a ball to bounce between them.
Myhill came forward to gather but was caught in two minds as he reached the edge of the area and Anelka nipped past him to turn the ball home.
Malouda should have added a third moments later but blasted over.
The Frenchman, however, made up for his earlier misses as he reacted first to stab home a Carvalho cross from close range after 75 minutes.
There was no way back for Hull but Brown gave the home fans something to cheer when he introduced local hero Dean Windass for only the second time this season late on.
Another Hull substitute, Richard Garcia, headed a late chance wide from a corner but there was to be no consolation. Nevertheless, the Tigers have still enjoyed a fine introduction to the top flight.
Their initiation will continue on Saturday when they travel to Manchester United.
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Express:
TIGERS BROUGHT BACK DOWN TO EARTH
Chelsea put high-flying Hull in their place to get back to winning ways in the Premier League with a 3-0 triumph.
Hull had gone into the game at the KC Stadium trailing the Blues only on goal difference but a stunning strike from Frank Lampard after just two minutes established superiority.
The Tigers hit the post through Daniel Cousin but Nicolas Anelka pounced on a mistake and Florent Malouda struck from close range to settle the contest.
It was the perfect response from Chelsea after suffering a first defeat of the season at the hands of Liverpool on Sunday.
Hull, who had won their previous four games, battled hard but in the end were well beaten by a Chelsea side whose extra class was evident.
Chelsea, lifted by the return of Joe Cole, were soon into their stride as Lampard gave them an early lead with a delicate left-footed chip which oozed class.
The England midfielder displayed perfect technique to clip over the stranded Boaz Myhill after Paul McShane had dispossessed Malouda but failed to clear.
The hosts were inches away from an equaliser after 22 minutes as Cousin's low shot from 20 yards took a slight deflection and beat Petr Cech, only to bounce back off the post.
Chelsea doubled their lead in the 50th minute as Anelka capitalised on uncertainty in the home defence to nip past Micheal Turner and Kamil Zayatte and turn the ball home past Myhill.
And Malouda made up for some earlier misses as he reacted first to stab home a Carvalho cross from close range after 75 minutes.
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morning papers liverpool home 0-1

The Times
October 27, 2008
Luiz Felipe Scolari rues the end of home rule with defeat to LiverpoolChelsea 0 Liverpool 1
Matt Hughes
Luiz Felipe Scolari has been so successful in making Chelsea loved again that even neutrals have enjoyed watching them this season – perhaps for the first time since Gianluca Vialli’s free-flowing side were winning cup competitions almost a decade ago – but he was not supposed to make them popular with their opponents too. The Brazilian may want to consult the fine print of his contract.
“It has not finished the world,” Scolari said of this defeat in his endearingly erratic English, even if this country’s footballing landscape does look slightly different this morning.
Given the adventurous way that they now play, it is difficult to see another 86 league matches elapsing until Chelsea are beaten again in their own stadium, which must be a galling thought for the players, many of whom have not known defeat while wearing a blue shirt. John Terry and Frank Lampard are the only survivors from Chelsea’s previous home league defeat – a 2-1 loss to Arsène Wenger’s Invincible Arsenal in February 2004, dated even more by the presence of Neil Sullivan in the home goal.
Rafael BenÍtez, the Liverpool manager, deserves immense credit for devising a game plan that will secure him a small place in the history books, and even more so for his uncharacteristic willingness to disclose it afterwards. The statistics show that it was no fluke either, as BenÍtez’s record of six wins and six draws from 21 matches against Chelsea is better than that of any other manager during the same period.
“Chelsea have full backs going forward all of the time, but we demonstrated you can go forward and create something,” BenÍtez said. “They will have problems behind their defenders because they go forward all the time.”
Liverpool were able to turn Chelsea’s greatest strength into their weakness, with Albert Riera and Dirk Kuyt pushing José Bosingwa and Ashley Cole farther back than they have been all season and creating space for Steven Gerrard to roam behind Robbie Keane.
It helped that in Javier Mascherano and Xabi Alonso, Liverpool possess the securest sentries in the Premier League – how Arsenal could do with just one of them – and they succeeded in keeping Lampard and Deco unusually subdued. It almost goes without saying that Jamie Carragher was a rock at the back, making one incredible tackle on Deco in the 76th minute when José Manuel Reina was exposed.
BenÍtez’s other salient comment was one of his simplest – “I prefer to score first” – with Alonso’s tenth-minute goal setting the tone for the entire game. Álvaro Arbeloa’s throw-in was flicked on by Kuyt, with Terry’s header falling to Alonso, who beat Petr Cech from 20 yards with the aid of a deflection off Bosingwa.
Chelsea chased the game with little success, and for all their neat passing in midfield, Reina remained untroubled. Other than commanding his area at crosses, the Spain goalkeeper was not required to make a save of note, although he would have been relieved to see Ashley Cole volley wide from close range in the 73rd minute after Franco Di Santo, the substitute, had headed down a great ball from Lampard. Liverpool could have extended their lead, though, with Alonso hitting the foot of the post with a superb free kick and Ryan Babel shooting narrowly wide after a great turn on the edge of the area.
Scolari conceded that Chelsea had been toothless in the final third, but failed to highlight the obvious cause. Nicolas Anelka was anonymous, providing further evidence that he lacks the spirit for a true fight, as well as the ability to lead the line on his own. Didier Drogba’s return from injury cannot come soon enough, while, given their lack of options on the bench, Peter Kenyon’s comments last week about Chelsea not making any signings in January look premature. Reinforcements are required.
Chelsea (4-1-4-1): P Cech 6 J Bosingwa 6 R Carvalho 6 J Terry 6 A Cole 5 J Obi Mikel 7 S Kalou 5 Deco 5 F Lampard 6 F Malouda 4 N Anelka 4 Substitutes S Sinclair (for Boswinga, 85min), F Di Santo 6 (for Kalou, 58), J Belletti (for Malouda, 58). Not used C Cudicini, B Ivanovic, P Ferreira, Alex. Next: Hull City (a)
Liverpool (4-2-3-1): J Reina 6 A Arbeloa 6 J Carragher 8 D Agger 7 F Aurélio 6 J Mascherano 7 Xabi Alonso 8 D Kuyt 7 S Gerrard 7 A Reira 7 R Keane 6 Substitutes R Babel (for Keane. 60min 6) Lucas Leiva (for Kuyt, 88), S Hyypia (for Reira, 90). Not used D Cavalieri, A Dossena, Y Benayoun, J Pennant. Next: Portsmouth (h)
Referee H Webb Attendance 41,705
Chelsea v Liverpool in numbers
86 Chelsea’s unbeaten home league run, which ended yesterday
63 Previous longest undefeated home league run, by Liverpool, 1978-81
3 Changes of Chelsea manager since last home league defeat by Arsenal in February 2004
14 Chelsea away league defeats during their unbeaten home sequence
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Telegraph:
Liverpool end Chelsea's four-year run at Stamford Bridge and top the Premier League
Chelsea (0) 0 Liverpool (1) 1 By Henry Winter at Stamford Bridge
For Chelsea, the clocks went back more than an hour, rewinding four years to a time when they last endured the ignominy of defeat at home. For Liverpool, the clocks went back even further, reviving memories of the 1989-1990 season that climaxed in their last title.
This was only one small step in a marathon season, but it felt like a giant stride. Liverpool will believe in their Premier League mission, in their ability to find fruit on awkward soil. Liverpool will know they can seize an early lead, as through the outstanding Xabi Alonso here, and possess the strength of mind and body to resist the opposition.
All sorts of numbers were mentioned here from the 86 games that Chelsea had been unbeaten in their King’s Road fortress, dating back to an Arsenal victory on February 21 2004, to the 48 hours that had elapsed since Luiz Felipe Scolari suggested his team could match Arsenal’s Invincibles and go through the season undefeated.
Names mattered more than numbers. This was a momentous victory for Liverpool carved from the defiance of Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger in thwarting Chelsea’s attackers, to the relentless blocking and tackling of Javier Mascherano and Alonso in midfield and on to the dynamism of Steven Gerrard and Albert Riera in taking the game to Scolari’s defence.
Liverpool were all heart, lungs and flying feet but the key factor was the mind of Benitez. The Spaniard’s tactics were inspired, his game-plan squeezing the life out of Chelsea’s feared spheres of influence. Liverpool doubled up on Chelsea’s usually buccaneering full-backs. Riera, a winger with work-rate, and Fabio Aurelio kept ushering Jose Bosingwa down cul de sacs. Over on the right, Dirk Kuyt and Alvaro Arbeloa stymied Ashley Cole.
In the centre, Liverpool’s 4-2-3-1 formation allowed Gerrard licence to break forward in support of Robbie Keane, knowing that Alonso and Mascherano were on determined sentry duty. Gerrard was also perfectly placed to disrupt Chelsea’s supply convoys masterminded by John Obi Mikel.
Missing Didier Drogba and Joe Cole, Chelsea struggled on the high and low road towards Pepe Reina’s area. Robinho’s hat-trick for Manchester City will have sent rueful thoughts spinning through Chelsea minds. But Liverpool could also mention absent friends, notably Fernando Torres.
For all the understandable focus on Harry Redknapp, this was comfortably the game of the day, of the season even. For the hundreds of millions tuning in worldwide, Chelsea and Liverpool laid on a spectacle not persistently high on technical expression but always compelling.
The fixture has rarely lacked edge. On the terraces, familiar taunts were traded. Chelsea fans mused loudly that their guests had no jobs, prompting Liverpool supporters to retort that their hosts had no European Cups. The competitive fray was swiftly seen on the field, Alonso flying into Frank Lampard with a force that spoke of past meetings as well as present collisions.
Despite a surface made treacherous by the rain, touches of class arose, a reverse pass from Lampard here, a clever flick from Gerrard there. When Liverpool’s captain won a throw-in on the right after 10 minutes, the stage was set for the game’s decisive moment.
When Arbeloa launched the ball into the box, John Terry was most alive to the danger, meeting the throw with a stretching header that clipped Bosingwa and fell invitingly to Alonso, lurking unmarked and dangerous 20 yards out. The Spaniard caught the ball well enough but its journey past Petr Cech required a deviation. Catching Bosingwa en route, Alonso’s shot eluded the wrong-footed Cech.
As Liverpool fans celebrated, as their midfield dominated, Chelsea sought crumbs of comfort such as when Mikel pushed Gerrard into the crowd. Revenge was swift, the Englishman nutmegging the Nigerian. Liverpool would not be bullied, particularly not Riera, blessed with a wonderful left foot and a hunger for life amidst the flying studs.
If Bosingwa suffers a recurring nightmare over the next month it will involve a deft Spaniard ghosting past him. Riera utterly bemused Bosingwa at one point, racing on and shooting just wide. Liverpool remained in ascendancy, Gerrard letting fly with a left-footed strike that Cech did brilliantly to push over. Riera then went round Bosingwa again. Once more, and he would have got to keep him.
Chelsea were stunned, urgently needing leadership. The captain, John Terry, began to bark orders, particularly at Florent Malouda. The usual creative forces, Deco and Lampard, started to show. Lampard briefly escaped the large shadow cast by Gerrard to unleash one of his long-range specials, deflected wide. Then came Deco, exploiting a lapse in control by Gerrard, storming forward but also firing off-target.
With Deco and Lampard more involved, Chelsea finished the first half strongly, knocking long and loud on Liverpool’s back-door but Carragher and Agger stood firm. Some of Liverpool’s tackling was immense, timed to perfection, so it was hugely frustrating when a magnificent challenge by Gerrard on Bosingwa drew a ludicrous caution from Webb.
England’s top referee, the only official deemed good enough for consideration for the 2010 World Cup, misread Gerrard’s intent and was deceived by Bosingwa’s histrionics. The full-back rolled around, knowing that Gerrard, having won the ball fairly, was free to race into untended space. Football must be never be allowed to descend into rollerball, but similarly it must never become non-contact. It’s not ballet.
Chelsea lacked invention, and the closest they came to an equaliser was when Kuyt’s penalty-box push on Ashley Cole went unpunished by Webb. Cole’s habit of moaning again hardly endeared himself to the officials. Occasionally booed by Liverpool fans, Cole also suffered the indignity of his huge poster being defaced outside the Bridge club shop.
Liverpool almost killed off Chelsea midway through the half. When Juliano Belletti kicked Riera in the face, Chelsea’s six-man wall was left redundant as Alonso’s free-kick sped past and thudded into the post with Cech stationary.
When Cole hooked a shot wide, smiles began taking shape on Liverpool faces. At the final whistle, Sammy Lee, that symbol of passion for the red cause, punched the air, Liverpool’s No 2 disappearing under a rare bear-hug from Benitez. Unlike the clocks, Liverpool know they have to keep going forward, keeping their focus if they are to claim the championship again.

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Independent:
Liverpool storm the Bridge
Chelsea 0 Liverpool 1
By Glenn Moore
The last time Chelsea lost at home the day's other significant result was Leeds United winning a point at Old Trafford. In the wider world Barack Obama was still hoping to win the Illinois Democratic nomination to run for a seat in the US Senate.
Much has happened in the subsequent four years, eight months and six days but until Howard Webb blew the final whistle yesterday no club had taken three league points from Stamford Bridge. Liverpool required a scappy goal to do so, Xabi Alonso's ninth-minute shot deflecting past Petr Cech off Jose Bosingwa, but they thoroughly deserved to be the first league winners here in 87 matches.
It was an outstanding performance by a Liverpool team lacking Fernando Torres and Martin Skrtel, one that suggests they are, at last, genuine championship contenders. Alonso also struck a post and Steven Gerrard drew a fine save from Cech as Liverpool played the better football and created the clearer chances.
Not until the 72nd-minute did Chelsea seriously threaten and even then Pepe Reina was not extended. The result moves Liverpool three points clear ahead of Chelsea and Hull City – who had lost at home to Torquay in the bottom division the day Chelsea lost 2-1 to Arsenal at the Bridge in February 2004. On Wednesday Chelsea go to Hull, while Liverpool host now managerless Portsmouth.
This result was a triumph for Rafael Benitez, who won the tactical battle hands-down. Chelsea were given no space to operate their midfield passing triangles and their attacking full-backs were neutered by Dirk Kuyt and Albert Riera. With Ashley Cole, Bosingwa and Deco suffocated Chelsea lacked creativity. As a consequence they went route one. Had Didier Drogba been leading the line this may have brought reward, but the Ivorian is injured, as is Joe Cole, whose imagination was equally missed.
Scolari began with his usual formation and expected personnel but Liverpool, with Gerrard operating behind Robbie Keane, and Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano forming a screen in central midfield, made the sharper start. This brought early reward as Kuyt headed on Alvaro Arbeloa's throw-in. John Terry headed the ball out but Bosingwa miskicked a clearance and the ball fell to Xabi Alonso. On his weaker left foot the Spaniard sent the ball off Bosingwa and into the net.
Chelsea have been behind surprisingly often in the previous 86 matches but always recovered. This time they rarely looked like doing so. With Gerrard and Keane taking turns to drop back and prevent John Obi Mikel dictating play, Chelsea could not get into any kind of rhythm.
Liverpool, with slightly less possession, continued to make the better chances with the excellent Riera striking the side netting and Cech making an athletic save to turn over Gerrard's dipping volley. In response, Deco, finding rare space, wasted it by shooting wide when he could have fed in Florent Malouda or Salomon Kalou.
Liverpool did have an escape 10 minutes into the second period when Malouda ran on to an Anelka flick only to be clattered by Reina. A penalty and red card loomed, until a linesman's flag was spotted correctly indicating offside. It was a good day all-round for the officials. Webb did not get every call right – Bosingwa conned him into booking Gerrard – but most decisions were correct in a match which required all the experience he gained as a beat officer managing testosterone-fuelled young men enjoying a Friday night out in Sheffield city centre. It was a performance which made one wonder whether the Football Association's refereeing recruitment programme should target the police and military.
By the hour Scolari had changed tack, bringing on the gangly teenager Franco Di Santo and moving to 4-4-2. In reality it was 3-4-3 with Ashley Cole playing in attack. Cole soon put a header wide, then a volley from Di Santo's knock-down as Chelsea finally opened Liverpool up. In between, though, Alonso struck the post from a 30-yard free-kick with Cech motionless. Finally Juliano Belletti played the pass of the match to release Deco, but he delayed and Jamie Carragher blocked.
That was characteristic of Liverpool's desire. Chelsea matched them for effort, but not for poise and nous in what was a very good match. This weekend Michel Platini, the Uefa president, suggested England could not win the World Cup because the Premier League had too many foreigners. But there were more Englishmen than there were players of any other nationality honing their talent here, in a game of greater quality than most Champions League fixtures.
Goal: Alonso (9) 0-1.
Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech; Bosingwa (Sinclair, 84), Carvalho, Terry, A Cole; Deco, Mikel, Lampard; Kalou (Di Santo, 57), Anelka, Malouda (Belletti, 57). Substitutes not used: Cudicini (gk), Ivanovic, Ferreira, Alex.
Liverpool (4-4-1-1): Reina; Arbeloa, Carragher, Agger, Aurelio; Kuyt (Lucas, 87), Alonso, Mascherano, Reira (Hyypia, 89); Gerrard; Keane (Babel, 59). Substitutes not used: Cavalieri (gk), Dossena, Benayoun, Pennant.
Referee: H Webb (S Yorks).
Booked: Chelsea: Malouda, Cole, Deco. Liverpool: Reira, Gerrard, Mascherano.
Man of the match: Gerrard.
Attendance: 41,705.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Guardian
Liverpool have the hallmark of title winners Chelsea 0 Liverpool 1 Alonso 10
Kevin McCarra at Stamford Bridge An heirloom can become so fragile over time that each new generation inherits it with mounting trepidation. Perhaps they wish secretly that it were not their responsibility. Luiz Felipe Scolari is now the man who happened to be in charge when Chelsea's magnificent run of 86 matches without defeat at home in the Premier League ended.
Victory for Liverpool was fully deserved, as is their place at the top of the table. Whatever Chelsea make of the outcome, the visitors gave another indication that they may become champions of England for the first time since 1990. This piece of evidence clicks into place beside the comeback against Manchester United at Anfield last month.
This game made fewer demands. The margin of victory might have been wider, Rafael Benítez's side almost doubling their lead in the 62nd minute when Xabi Alonso's free-kick cannoned off a post.
This is no time for Chelsea to give thanks, but Ashley Cole ought to be relieved that he did not receive a second caution from the referee, Howard Webb, for a foul on the substitute Ryan Babel. The left-back was to suffer nonetheless, scything wide a knockdown from the substitute Franco Di Santo after 73 minutes. Otherwise Chelsea lacked menace. Javier Mascherano embodied the excellence of a Liverpool midfield that both parried and made sharp thrusts of its own.
They merited a sleeker goal, although the winner is in no danger of being disowned. In the 10th minute Alvaro Arbeloa's throw-in was headed on by the remarkably industrious Dirk Kuyt and into the path of Alonso. The Spaniard's shot from the edge of the area broke off Jose Bosingwa to wrong-foot Petr Cech.
This was Liverpool's first Premier League goal at this stadium under Benítez. That must be viewed as more than an accident. Some will remain doubtful whether there is the quality in depth to tide the club over in a long campaign fought on several fronts, but the injury to a key performer, in Fernando Torres, has not undone them. It was their opponents who were limited here.
Despite the early goal leaving great stretches of time for recovery, no momentum was achieved by Chelsea. They have been counting on the movement and passing in midfield that shreds the opposition, but Liverpool are about as well equipped as a side can be to counter that approach. Scolari has no alternative method to unsettle the opposition. With Nicolas Anelka as the one experienced forward available at present, defenders are not apprehensive.
Chelsea have cut loose in this campaign against teams who were incapable of halting their build-up play, but in fixtures of this calibre Scolari will suffer from time to time if there are no credible alternatives in attack. The Brazilian is reduced to offering estimates as to the recovery time Didier Drogba will need after knee and ankle problems; after this defeat it was put at 10 days. In truth, outsiders are still to be persuaded that he will ever be in perfect condition again. It should be borne in mind that his total in the last Premier League campaign was a modest eight goals.
Chelsea's chief executive, Peter Kenyon, recently ruled out signings in January, saying: "There isn't any need." Scolari had better hope this is merely a negotiating tactic rather than a deeply held belief. They may have cut loose on several occasions but higher-order rivals understand how to check them. A defeat such as this could have been foreseen last month when it took Salomon Kalou's 80th-minute leveller to prevent Manchester United from making off with full points.
If there is any marginal benefit for Chelsea in the wake of these events, it may be that they will be spared some of the attention that is habitually trained upon them, whereas Liverpool can prepare for a more intense scrutiny.
Incrementally, the Anfield squad has been upgraded and, for instance, the arrival of Albert Riera on the left of midfield has improved the balance. Moreover, the established strengths are intact. When Deco did burrow deep into the penalty area after 76 minutes, the block challenge from Jamie Carragher was characteristically resolute.
Benítez, for his part, is no novice in occasions of this sort. Scolari shoved John Terry into attack as time petered out, but Liverpool countered by bringing on an extra centre-back in Sami Hyypia. If Liverpool are viewed as real contenders for the title, though, they will have to deal with the expectations heaped upon them and a rising intensity in the challenge they meet each weekend.
For Scolari there is an irony to be considered. The unbeaten sequence spanned the reigns of Claudio Ranieri, who was in command when Arsenal won a league game here on February 21 2004, Jose Mourinho and Avram Grant. Scolari has been more admired by neutrals than any of them because of the elegant football he demands. Yet the record has ended on his watch.
Regardless of concerns about the forward line, this manager is bound to start again without compromising a vision that will be to his credit and that of Chelsea.
Man of the match Javier Mascherano
He typified the concentration and strength of the visiting midfielders as Chelsea were either stopped or outplayed
Best moment The tackle that stopped a promising surge by the substitute Juliano Belletti
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Mail:
Chelsea 0 Liverpool 1: Rafa's Reds blows the bridge and booms out a title warningBy Matt Barlow
Somehow it was inevitable that Rafa Benitez would not be far away when Chelsea’s long unbeaten home run finally came to an end.Eighty-six times since February 2004, teams have arrived at Stamford Bridge filled with trepidation and 86 times they have left with perhaps a point or, more often, nothing to show for their efforts.On Sunday, thanks to one Benitez masterplan and a deflected Xabi Alonso shot, Liverpool cut the run dead.
With it, they eased clear at the top of the Barclays Premier League and identified themselves as serious contenders for their first League title since 1990.But this result was worth more than a mere three points to Liverpool.
It provided a mighty lungful of self-belief that they are equipped to go the distance.It also forced Luiz Felipe Scolari to swallow his first defeat in English football and planted a tiny seed of doubt at the heart of one of their fiercest rivals for that prize.Is this defeat the price of flair?
By abandoning the caution of Jose Mourinho and Avram Grant and embracing dashing dare, has Scolari made Chelsea mortal at the Bridge once more?
Just at the time he was lured into a conversation about being ‘invincible’ and completing a whole season without defeat.For Benitez, the result underlines his tactical acumen when his contract situation is wriggling on to the agenda.
The Spaniard is less than two years from the end of his deal and clearly irritated there is no sign of an improved one on the table.
His point has now been made.
The timing could not have been better.This was the 21st time Benitez had locked horns with Chelsea in four-and-a-bit years on Merseyside.It was his sixth win, although only his second in the League.
The others came in two Champions League semi-finals, an FA Cup semi-final and a Community Shield.Without the rapier thrust of Fernando Torres, Benitez resisted the temptation to sit back and defend in numbers.
Instead, he came out with virtually four strikers to press Chelsea back.Robbie Keane played in the traditional centre forward role, supported by Steven Gerrard, with wide men Dirk Kuyt and Albert Riera looking to exploit the spaces left by Scolari’s raiding full backs.Kuyt and Riera were outstanding — strong, aggressive and willing as they pressurised Jose Bosingwa and Ashley Cole.
These duels on the flanks were the key.
With Alonso and Javier Mascherano snapping away in the centre, Chelsea were always hurried and never settled into their rhythm.Early movement from those supporting Keane created the goal in the 10th minute, although there was luck involved.
Alvaro Arbeloa’s throw was flicked on by Kuyt and John Terry’s clearing header fell to Alonso on the edge of the box.
His shot hit Bosingwa on the chest and wrong-footed Petr Cech.It was the first goal conceded by Chelsea in six games and, despite long spells of possession, Scolari’s team rarely created a clear chance.Salomon Kalou and Deco might have done better in the first half but Cech made a flying fingertip save to stop Gerrard extending the lead with a 30-yard screamer.Unable to release their full backs to operate as auxiliary wingers, Chelsea soon fell into the trap of launching long diagonal passes at Nicolas Anelka or trying to knit intricate patterns through a cluttered centre.
Liverpool centre backs Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger dealt impressively with both forms of attack.Scolari made changes just before the hour but injuries meant his bench did not provide the range of options you could expect from such an expensive squad.
On went South Americans Franco di Santo and Juliano Belletti and Chelsea pressed, but rarely did they breakthrough to Pepe Reina.Only Cole really saw the whites of the goalkeeper’s eyes, 17 minutes from time.
Di Santo nodded a ball into his path but England’s left back panicked, shot too early and sliced it wide.
Moments later, Carragher produced a superb block to thwart Deco.Reina did not have a save to make but he was brave under the aerial assault.
The Liverpool keeper punched effectively and stood up to Terry when the Chelsea skipper tried to soften him up.Terry had rescued his team against Roma on Wednesday but there were no heroics this time.As Chelsea took more risks, Liverpool looked dangerous on the break with substitute Ryan Babel sent on to use his blistering pace.Alonso thumped a free-kick against the foot of the post with Cech frozen to the spot and Babel went close with a ferocious shot.Liverpool players ripped off their shirts and pumped the air at the final whistle.
Their fans sang about being top of the League.
Benitez and Scolari exchanged a handshake.That man Benitez again.
CHELSEA (4-3-3): Cech 6; Bosingwa 5 (Sinclair 85min), Carvalho 6, Terry 6, A Cole5; Lampard 6, Mikel 6, Deco 5; Kalou 4 (DiSanto 58, 5), Anelka 4, Malouda 5 (Belletti58, 5). Booked: Malouda, A Cole, Deco.
LIVERPOOL (4-2-3-1): Reina 7; Arbeloa 7,Carragher 9, Agger 8, Aurelio 7; Mascherano 6, Alonso 7; Kuyt 8 (Lucas 88),Gerrard 7, Riera 8 (Hyypia 90); Keane 6 (Babel 60). Booked: Riera, Gerrard,Mascherano.
Man of the match: Jamie Carragher.Referee: Howard Webb.
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Sun:
Chelsea 0 Liverpool 1
By STEVEN HOWARD at Stamford Bridge RAFA BENITEZ’S glowing tribute to his team was halted briefly yesterday as a fire alarm went off in the Chelsea press room.
It was quickly stopped but not before alarm bells started ringing round the Premier League that perhaps this could be the season Liverpool end their 19-year quest for the title.
For the termination of Chelsea’s 86-match unbeaten League run at Stamford Bridge was no fluke.
Liverpool may have arrived in West London with a desperate record of just one win in 16 at the Bridge since the Premier League started. But you would never have guessed such was the confident way they went about their business.
Benitez’s side was superior to Chelsea in every department, conceding nothing at the back and tearing great holes in the once impenetrable Chelsea defence.
In the end, a 3-0 victory would not have flattered them against a Chelsea side who managed just one effort on target — and that no more than a tame Frank Lampard header with just eight minutes to go.
Benitez talked afterwards of what a massive message this was to Liverpool’s title rivals on a weekend where Manchester United also dropped points at Everton.
He spoke proudly of his team’s commitment and character and how they could now go to any stadium and get a result.
Sure, there may have been only one goal in it and yet they won with so much to spare you wondered just how Chelsea had remained unbeaten for so long. The Blues, in fact, had not lost at home since goals from Patrick Vieira and Edu gave Arsenal a 2-1 victory on February 21, 2004.
A lot has changed in the intervening years.
Leeds United, who drew 1-1 at Old Trafford on the same day, are now in League One. Hull, beaten at home by Torquay in League Two, are now level on 20 points with Chelsea and just three adrift of the new outright leaders.
The one thing that hasn’t altered is the hope that springs eternal in the breast of every Liverpool fan that, surely, this is the year the team bring the title back to Anfield for the first time since 1990.
Outstanding
Well, if they go on playing like this there is no reason why it shouldn’t be.
Except, of course, the inconsistency that has haunted Liverpool down the years. The inconsistency that saw Wigan twice lead at Anfield only last weekend, the inconsistency that will follow them to the last kick of the last match.
Much will be made of the fact Chelsea were without heavyweights Michael Essien, Michael Ballack, Joe Cole and Didier Drogba.
Yet that was also the case at Middlesbrough last week and Chelsea had no trouble in thrashing Gareth Southgate’s side 5-0.
In fact, it was suggested Chelsea played with a far greater attacking swagger when Drogba was not in the side. Yet if there was one player they missed yesterday it was their muscular Ivorian striker.
Suddenly an attacking three of Florent Malouda, Nicolas Anelka and Salomon Kalou looked lightweight, making little or no progress against a resolute Liverpool defence in which Jamie Carragher was outstanding.
Not that Chelsea helped themselves. Luiz Felipe Scolari talked afterwards of how it was difficult to break down an eight-man Liverpool defence that threw a suffocating blanket over his team’s attacking ideas.
But that failed to take into account the tremendous pace and aggression with which Liverpool launched some devastating counter-attacks.
It also failed to acknowledge the seeming inability of either Malouda or Kalou to get their crosses beyond the first defender. Time and again balls were hit against covering
Liverpool bodies or high into an area where Carragher and Daniel Agger were dominant.
In the end, a dispirited Anelka was — not for the first time in his career — reduced to scavenging for morsels down the left touchline.
Someone else might call it hiding.
There were no such problems with Liverpool. Rarely have they looked up for such a game at the Bridge, though they had a slice of luck for their 10th-minute goal from Xabi Alonso.
The Spaniard’s effort would surely have been covered by Petr Cech only for the Chelsea keeper to be wrongfooted when Alonso’s shot took a deflection off Jose Bosingwa.
Cech then kept the Blues in the game with a magnificent tip-over from a Steven Gerrard 25-yarder as Liverpool continued to offer the real threat in front of goal.
The second half was more of the same with Alonso only denied a second when his 61st-minute free-kick rebounded off the foot of Cech’s left upright.
Chelsea’s one chance to salvage both their record and a draw came when young Franco Di Santo, on for Kalou, headed perfectly into Ashley Cole’s path.
The moment called for a calm head and controlled finish. Cole, instead, sliced wildly into the jubilant Liverpool fans behind Pepe Reina’s goal.
And that was about it. Never has such a distinguished record been extinguished with less fuss.
Last Friday, Scolari had spoken of Chelsea being the best team he had ever managed. How they had passion, professionalism and the perfect squad.
Four years may be a long time in football. But so, it appears, is two days.
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Mirror:
Chelsea 0-1 Liverpool: Xabi Alonso ends Stamford Bridge record to usher in a new era By Oliver Holt 27/10/2008
All the old certainties of life are abandoning us.
House prices have stopped going up, Australia can’t win cricket matches and Gordon Brown’s started to look happy.
To top it all off, the safest bank in football went bump yesterday when Chelsea lost a league game at home.
For the first time in more than four and a half years, the Stamford Bridge crowd saw their invincibles vanquished in the Premier League.
For the first time in 86 matches, the first time since Arsenal left here with a win on February 21, 2004, they had to endure the strange taste of defeat.
It made it worse that it was Liverpool who beat them. The same Liverpool who twice broke Chelsea hearts in the semi-finals of the Champions League.
And the same Liverpool who are now appear on the verge of fashioning their first significant challenge for the title for two decades.
Their fans danced and bounced like maniacs in their corner of the ground when the final whistle went and they leapfrogged Chelsea at the top of the table.
They baited Chelsea supporters with their favourite taunt about how ’you ain’t got no history’ even as they ripped one precious strand of that history away from them.
And they headed back to Merseyside knowing that they had outplayed their hosts even without their leading striker, the injured Fernando Torres.
So now that the record so keenly cherished and fiercely protected by Jose Mourinho has gone, the question is whether this match held a deeper significance.
Chelsea should be able to shrug it off as easily as their manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, who said a defeat was a defeat wherever it was played.
Lost points were lost points, Scolari shrugged. "I say sorry to the fans," the Brazil boss added, "but my players did their best."
Scolari and Chelsea can also take heart from the fact that they were missing crucial players like Didier Drogba, Michael Ballack and Joe Cole.
The physical presence of Drogba was particularly sorely missed yesterday against a Liverpool central defensive partnership of Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger who dealt with everything that was thrown at them with great courage and authority.
The fact that Chelsea were pumping long balls into the box in the first place, though, was a sign that the home team had run out of ideas.
That was a tribute to a Liverpool side who provided the perfect away performance, full of poise and assurance, rock solid at the back, dangerous on the break and underpinned by a formidable amount of hard work.
Chelsea will move back into the mix when they start to get their injured players back but they may still find it hard to dislodge Liverpool from the Premier League summit.
It is the first time we have been able to say that for many, many years. Even in the best times under Gerard Houllier, Liverpool never quite looked like they had the depth or the quality to last the course.
But now they do. They were superb as they dismantled Chelsea’s record yesterday, anchored by brilliant performances from Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano in the heart of midfield.
They also appear to have gained an extra dimension, maybe even the final piece in the jigsaw, with the arrival of Spanish wide player, Albert Riera.
Riera, who appears to have had a brain transplant since he played at Manchester City, was outstanding against Chelsea right back Jose Bosingwa.
He has perfected a technique of seeming to lose the ball and then recovering it and wriggling past his man. His delivery from the left was consistently good.
Steven Gerrard was excellent as always, full backs Fabio Aurelio and Alvaro Arbeloa were neat and clever and Dirk Kuyt did everything he could to keep Ashley Cole occupied.
On the solitary occasion when Cole did get free, he wasted Chelsea’s best chance to salvage a draw, snatching at a left-foot half volley after a good nod down from Franco di Santo.
Liverpool deserved their win, though. They had taken the lead in the 10th minute when Alonso’s shot deflected off the chest of Bosingwa and left Cech helpless.
Chelsea tried as best they could to force their way back into the game but Deco was quiet and Lampard ran into the brick wall built by Alonso and Mascherano.
Liverpool might have won the game more comfortably and Alonso crashed a free kick against the base of Cech’s left hand post early in the second half.
Scolari grew more and more frustrated with his side’s readiness to lump long balls high into the Liverpool box.
And even though Rafa Benitez became increasingly animated on the touchline, Cole’s miss was their only moment of real vulnerability.
Benitez, who has constructed this Liverpool side so patiently and so lovingly, was already thinking about his team’s next match against Portsmouth a few minutes after the final whistle.
"If we are going to keep this mentality and this momentum," he said, "we need another three points in our next match. We want to stay at the top of the table for a long time."
Scolari did not seem unduly dismayed by becoming the manager who lost the most famous unbeaten record in football.
"The players are sad," he said, "but the war isn’t over. It’s just one game.".
Chelsea: Cech 6, Bosingwa 5, Carvalho 6, Terry 7, Cole 7, Mikel 6, Deco 5(Sinclair 5), Lampard 7, Malouda 5(Belletti 6), Kalou 5(Di Santo 6), Anelka 6.
Liverpool: Reina 7, Arbeloa 7, Carragher 8, Agger 8, Aurelio 7, Kuyt 7(Lucas 6), Alonso 8, Mascherano 8, Riera 7(Hyypia 7), Gerrard 7, Keane 6(Babel 7).
Hero: Alonso - ran the match. Villain: Deco - couldn’t step up when team needed him.
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Express:
BENITEZ THE TERMINATOR
By Tony Banks Chelsea 0 Liverpool 1
IT HAS happened before and it will no doubt happen again. There Chelsea are, tootling along without a care in the world, bowling over all and sundry with their lovely, winning football. And then along comes Rafa Benitez.
He did it to Jose Mourinho, to the Special One’s fury, he did it to Claudio Ranieri, he very nearly did it to poor old Avram Grant and now he has done it to Luiz Felipe Scolari …stopped their teams in their tracks and completely upset the seemingly unstoppable applecart.
No one has the measure of Chelsea quite like Benitez. The Spaniard’s tactical wizardry all too often explodes in his face, especially in domestic games, but not against the men from Stamford Bridge.
Twice he has ended their hopes at the semi-final stage of the Champions League, once turfed them out of the FA Cup, several times frustrated them in the Premier League.
Yesterday in the driving rain at Stamford Bridge, Benitez wrote his name in the record books as he ended the longest unbeaten home league run in English football. Eighty-six games, four years and three managers had gone by since Chelsea last went down on their own turf – on February 21, 2004, when Arsenal won 2-1.
But thanks to Xabi Alonso’s deflected shot yesterday, Benitez confirmed Liverpool’s status as genuine title challengers this season. Not since 1990 have they lifted the trophy, but this win gave them their best start to a Premier League season – and their manager’s first away victory in the league against another top-four team. Of course, it had to come against Chelsea.
Benitez has been grumbling lately that with just two years of his contract left he has heard nothing from the Anfield hierarchy about talks on a new deal. Six weeks ago his team, once again without Fernando Torres, beat Manchester United at Anfield. Now they have beaten Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. His pounding on the boardroom door will surely soon become difficult to ignore.
As for Chelsea? The end of an era. Even Grant never lost at home in the league.
This was a pale shadow of the Chelsea side that have been so imperious lately, sweeping aside Aston Villa and Middlesbrough and overcoming Roma. This time they met a team meticulously prepared as ever by Benitez, packed full of players able to hurt them – and most importantly full of players who at last look as if they are beginning to believe.
Under Scolari, this type of defeat was always more likely to happen to Chelsea. Not for him the locking up of a game in the steely fashion of Mourinho, or the grim caution of Grant. The Brazilian goes for it in a big way. When it works it is glorious and the plaudits flow. When it fails, it is because it has become a victim of its own romance.
The procession has been stopped. The remorseless winning machine with a smile has been derailed. And now Hull await on Wednesday.
In truth, Chelsea looked out of sorts from the off. Even though Deco had an early shot blocked, they were too frantic, too rushed, too sloppy.
The goal was typical. John Terry’s headed clearance was a poor one. It dropped to Alonso on the edge of the area and his volley deflected off Jose Bosingwa to leave Petr Cech helpless.
The troublesome Albert Reira hit the side-netting, but Liverpool went even closer as Steven Gerrard picked up Dirk Kuyt’s flick-on and cracked a dipping 35-yard drive that Cech showed quick reflexes to tip over.
Chelsea created very few clear-cut chances as Liverpool throttled the life out of the game in midfield. Too often Florent Malouda and Salomon Kalou ran into blind alleys and even when Gerrard lost the ball, Deco fired wide.
Liverpool were always menacing on the break and they should have wrapped up the points when Alonso fired in a free-kick from the edge of the area. With Cech an onlooker, Chelsea breathed again as the ball cannoned off the foot of a post.
It was then, ironically, that they created their best chance. Frank Lampard chipped the ball in, Franco Di Santo nodded down, but Ashley Cole, alone eight yards out, somehow skewed his shot high and wide.
Jamie Carragher’s usual diligence foiled Deco as the Portugal midfielder broke through again and Chelsea wilted. They knew this was not their day.
The proper title race is officially open. The full list of runners has been declared.
Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech 7; Bosingwa 7 (Sinclair 87), Carvalho 7, Terry 6, A Cole 6; Deco 6, Mikel 7, Lampard 6; Kalou 6 (Belletti 59, 6), Anelka 6, Malouda 6 (Di Santo 59, 6). Booked: Malouda, A Cole, Deco.
Liverpool (4-5-1): Reina 7; Arbeloa 7, Carragher 7, Agger 7, Aurelio 7; Kuyt 7 (Lucas 89), Gerrard 7, Mascherano 7, Alonso 8, Riera 7 (Hyypia 90); Keane 6 (Babel 60, 6). Booked: Arbeloa, Gerrard, Mascherano. Goal: Alonso 10.
Referee: H Webb (S Yorkshire).
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Star:
ALONSO LEADS REDS TO VICTORY
By Nicola McCafferty for dailystar.co.uk
Chelsea - 0 Liverpool - 1
Chelsea's 86-game unbeaten home league record was smashed today as Xabi Alonso's first-half goal sent Liverpool three points clear at the top of the table.
Alonso struck in the ninth minute when his 20-yard shot deflected off Jose Bosingwa and left Petr Cech wrong-footed.
It was Chelsea’s first defeat under new boss Luiz Felipe Scolari but Liverpool held the reins in the pulsating contest at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues had not been beaten at home since Arsenal’s 2-1 success in February 2004 but Liverpool deserved their triumph with an impressive display.
Chelsea began the brighter of the two sides and their initial thrusts almost resulted in an opening goal.
Nicolas Anelka dribbled his way into the penalty area in the third minute but was tackled before he could test Jose Reina.
The ball fell to Deco but the Chelsea midfielder’s shot was deflected to safety. Liverpool went ahead in the ninth minute with their first attack of the game.
Chelsea failed to deal with a thrown-in when John Terry could only half-clear Dirk Kuyt’s clever back-header.
The ball fell to Alonso on the edge of the penalty area and his shot deflected off Chelsea right-back Bosingwa into the net.
Liverpool were now in commanding form and dominating the game.
In the 17th minute, Albert Riera beat Bosingwa on the left flank but fired his shot into the side netting.
Chelsea, hoping to stretch their unbeaten home league sequence to 87 games, struggled to get back into the game.
Bosingwa tried to run at the Liverpool defence in the 21st minute but was chopped down crudely by Riera who received a booking from referee Howard Webb as a result.
Seconds later Salomon Kalou headed just over the bar from another cross by Bosingwa.
Liverpool continued to look dangerous and in the 24th minute they almost increased their lead when Cech was forced to tip a glorious volley from Steven Gerrard over the bar.
Chelsea began to find some consistency as the first half wore on but they were struggling to produce a telling final ball into the penalty area.
Time and again their neat approach work was undone by a poor pass but Frank Lampard, so often their inspiration, won a corner in the 33rd minute with a deflected shot.
But although it came to nothing, Chelsea continued to enjoy their best spell of the game.
Bosingwa sent over a number of crosses from the right flank but Daniel Agger and Jamie Carragher were inspired at the heart of the visitors’ defence.
In the 36th minute Deco was given time and space to run at the Liverpool defence but his left-foot drive from 18 yards was wide of Jose Reina’s right-hand upright.
In the 38th minute Gerrard looked to be heading for an early bath for a foul on Bosingwa.
However, referee Webb elected to show the England midfielder a yellow card for his challenge.
Liverpool’s speed on the counter-attack almost opened up Chelsea again in the 43rd minute but, despite some confusion in the home defence, John Mikel Obi managed to clear their lines.
Chelsea began the second half in a much brighter fashion and it required an interception from Carragher to prevent a cross from Florent Malouda reaching its destination in the six-yard box.
In the 53rd minute Malouda was booked for checking a fine run by Alvaro Arbeloa.
Moments later Malouda was felled by Liverpool ’keeper Reina in the penalty area but he had already been ruled offside by referee Webb.
Cole was next into Webb’s book when the official took a dislike to his challenge on Carragher.
In the 57th minute, Kuyt tried his luck from 20 yards but his effort was wide of the target.
It was the catalyst for a Chelsea to make a double substitution with Malouda and Kalou replaced by Juliano Belletti and Franco Di Santo.
It was another indication of Chelsea’s growing frustration and it prompted Liverpool to replace Robbie Keane with Ryan Babel.
The Reds were awarded a free-kick 25 yards out in the 60th minute when Belletti kicked Riera in the face.
Chelsea then had a massive escape when Alonso’s effort rebounded off the foot of the post for Ricardo Carvalho to clear.
Babel was brought down by Cole as he tried to collect the ball but referee Webb decided to book Javier Mascherano for attempting to persuade the official to dismiss the left-back.
Cole squandered a great chance to level the scores in the 73rd minute when Di Santo nodded Lampard’s cross into his path.
But the defender screwed his effort wide of the post from eight yards. Moments later Carragher rescued Liverpool when he deflected Deco’s effort for a corner.
At the opposite end, a 25-yard drive from Babel was only just wide of the target.

morning papers roma home 1-0

The Times October 23, 2008 John Terry heads to the rescue for Chelsea Chelsea 1 Roma 0 Matt Hughes It is nights such as this that set John Terry apart. He rose above the backache, he rose above the Roma defence and, as a result, Chelsea have risen above their Champions League group opponents by three points to take pole position at the halfway stage. It might not have been that way. Remove Terrys contribution and perhaps Chelsea would be viewing the coming weeks with trepidation. Had they dropped points at Stamford Bridge last night, qualification would have been perilously open, with all four teams in group A in with a shout and Chelsea facing two of their final three matches away from home. This competition has not always been kind to Terry and nothing less than lifting the trophy itself will ease the pain of his penalty miss against Manchester United in Moscow, but this is a fresh campaign and Luiz Felipe Scolari and his players already have their captain to thank for allowing them breathing space going into the return match in Rome next month. His will to win, and his determination not to lose, carried the game. It was not just his 78th-minute goal that separated the teams, but a staunch defensive display, standing firm against the quick wit of Francesco Totti and the counterattacking danger of a Roma team who came to West London to do a typically Italian job by claiming a point and came devilishly close to executing the plan to perfection. Chelsea did not beat Roma in open play, Terrys winning goal coming from a corner by Frank Lampard, and in the first half it was much the same. Roma were vulnerable only once the action had been suspended, from Lampards set-pieces rather than the invention of Deco, who was denied space and had a quiet game on his return to the starting line-up after a month out with injury. And if Chelsea would certainly not have won without Terry, a more worrying thought is that, perhaps, they would have lost. Scolari has been predicting a game such as this for some time, a moment when the beautiful football would not be enough. Both through Chelseas fatigue and the solid organisation of the opposition, a blip had to happen sooner or later and, suddenly, here it was. Chelsea were poor, Roma were resilient and the game was drifting towards two points shared when Terry arrived to score his first club goal in almost a year. Lampard took an inswinging corner from the left and Terry got there first, steering his header past Doni, the Roma goalkeeper, at the near post, stumbling as he landed and sitting upright on the turf as home supporters alternated between celebration and the fear that the captain had further aggravated his injured back. He may pay for it this morning, although Scolari claims he has been pain-free of late, but as he rose gingerly and resumed his position at the heart of defence, it appeared that he was merely making sure everything was where it should be and accepting the congratulations of his team-mates in repose. He deserved it. This was one of those nights that serve as a reminder of what an inspirational player Terry can be and it is no coincidence that three of the greatest managers of the modern age, Jos Mourinho, Scolari and Fabio Capello, have made him their captain. Rio Ferdinand did an excellent job in his absence with England last week, but nobody conveys that very English form of inspiration quite like Terry. Scolari may be Brazilian by birth, but he is a football man at heart and football men love leaders in the lionheart mould. Arsne Wenger never once considered removing Tony Adams as the Arsenal captain and Terry has played the full 90 minutes of every game under Scolari, bar the final 13 minutes against Manchester City after he was shown a red card. On Scolaris first day in the job, Terry introduced himself by name. Scolaris response was to assure the captain he knew who he was and what he could do. In essence, he knew about nights such as this, when Chelsea would labour and all that would dig them out of a hole is a captain who makes it his mission not to finish on the losing, or failing, side. He did it against Barcelona in Mourinhos first season, scoring the winner, and the game against Valencia that turned Avram Grants time around also took on the form of Terry against the rest late in the second half. Now it is Scolaris turn to benefit. It was not that Chelsea lacked ambition, more that they failed to attain the heights of recent weeks, and Roma came to Stamford Bridge with a plan. This has been a poor season for Luciano Spallettis side so far, but any hope that Roma would be brushed aside as effortlessly, if not as spectacularly, as they have been by Manchester United in recent seasons soon evaporated. The Italians were level at half-time and while Chelsea had the bulk of scoring chances, Roma caused a big scare after 35 minutes when a moment of inspiration from Totti showed why they cannot be casually dismissed in the return leg. Totti has been Romas talisman for more than a decade now and, deployed as a lone striker, he was still the man who Chelsea had to watch, dropping into space in midfield and creating room for Matteo Brighi, bursting through from deep. He played a lovely pass to Brighi just before half-time and, suddenly, space opened up in Chelseas back line. It took a quite superb tackle by Terry to divert Brighis shot for a corner at the last moment. Much of the rest of it was somewhere between ho and hum. There was early promise when a cross from Wayne Bridge was blocked and Lampard had time to tee the ball up before hitting a dipping shot that Doni dealt with efficiently. After that, though, Roma sharply closed down Chelseas midfield and space was at a premium. Chelseas best early chance came from a dead ball after John Obi Mikel had been tripped by Philippe Mexs, the Roma defender. Deco rolled the free kick to Lampard, whose shot skimmed the top of Donis bar. Soon after, Salomon Kalou cut inside on the right to force a save from Doni with a low shot and in the second half a free kick from Lampard was headed to Donis left by Kalou, only for the goalkeeper to be equal again. But these were slim pickings by Chelseas standards. Roma looked the more dangerous team on the break and what appeared an easy group may still turn nasty if Chelsea slip up in Rome. Chelsea (4-1-4-1): P Cech J Bosingwa, R Carvalho, J Terry, W Bridge J O Mikel S Kalou (sub: F Di Santo, 77min), Deco, F Lampard, F Malouda (sub: J Belletti, 46) N Anelka (sub: P Ferreira, 90). Substitutes not used: C Cudicini, B Ivanovic, Alex, M Stoch. Booked: Malouda, Terry. Roma (4-2-3-1): Doni Cicinho, P Mexs, C Panucci, J A Riise (sub: M Tonetto, 81) D De Rossi, M Brighi R Taddei (sub: J Menez, 80), A Aquilani (sub: S Perrotta, 60), M Vucinic F Totti. Substitutes not used: Artur, S Loria, V Montella, S Okaka Chuka. Booked: Mexs. Referee: K Vassaras (Greece). --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Telegraph: 'Injured' John Terry proves the difference for Chelsea against Roma in Champions League Chelsea (0) 1 Roma (0) 0 By John Ley at Stamford Bridge If John Terry is happy to play through the pain barrier imagine what he could do for Chelsea when he is fully fit. Terry is suffering from a back problem that prevented him from England duty last week, with Luiz Felipe Scolari claiming the defender would happily play in agony. On Wednesday night, Terry headed the only goal in a game that was far from the thing of beauty Scolari had predicted, to put Chelsea in a commanding position in Group A. With Bordeaux beating FC Cluj, Chelsea visit Rome in a fortnight three points clear and in a commanding position. Roma will have noted, with some trepidation, that Chelsea were able to recall European heavyweights in Petr Cech, Ricardo Carvalho and Deco one Champions League finalist and two winners to the side that swept Middlesbrough aside in demonstrative fashion at the weekend. Roma, beaten by the same 4-0 scoreline by Inter Milan, included Francesco Totti for only his second game back since undergoing knee surgery, while John Arne Riises inclusion was met with some pleasure by the Chelsea fans who remember with fondness the Norwegians last minute own goal, for Liverpool at Anfield in last season Champions League semi-final. Riises final game in a Liverpool shirt was in the return at Stamford Bridge, when Chelsea reached Moscow in extra time, and from the early exchanges there appeared a determination from the men in blue to at least match that achievement. The incentive of playing the final on home turf should have been enough to spur Roma but the home defeat by the Transylvanians of FC Cluj had already dented the aspirations of the Giallorossi before last nights game. Luiz Felipe Scolari had predicted a beautiful game and while the early exchanges were more on the attractive side, it was Chelsea who began more positively with Lampards ninth minute volley stretching Doni, the Roma goalkeeper celebrating his 29th birthday. Soon afterwards Florent Malouda kicked at air with an attempted volley before another attempt, from Lampard, sailed into no-mans land. Roma responded with a poor free-kick from Daniele De Rossi but the Italians were beginning to settle, their midfield stemming various attempts to get the ball to Nicolas Anelka, and their defence standing firm. A timely tackle by Alberto Aquilani halted an approach from Lampard on the edge of the Roma penalty area and then Philippe Mexes was cautioned for halting a flowing run by John Mikel Obi. From the free-kick, Decos short kick set up Lampard and his rising attempt grazed the top of the Roma cross-bar. Had events turned out differently, Lampard could now be facing the likes of Roma on a more regular basis. That he chose to remain in London rather than export his talents to Series A and Inter Milan in the summer is proving, with each performance, to be Jose Mourinhos loss and Scolaris gain. The game was still refusing to reveal its beauty and was lacking a goal; when Salomon Kalou directed a shot with some ferocity, Doni saved well again. In Chelseas last European outing, in Cluj, Didier Drogba left on a stretcher and remains sidelined with an ankle problem. His presence, as the game progressed, was being missed. And Roma threatened to open the scoring nine minutes from half time when Matteo Brighi, from the edge of the Chelsea area, prepared to shoot only to be tackled with brilliant timing by John Terry. As the teams walked off at half time, the two captains, Terry and Totti appeared displeased with the other, pushing and snarling as they left the pitch and that encapsulated what had been a generally poor first period. The ineffectual Florent Malouda was replaced, at half-time, by Juliano Belletti, whose first act was to deliver a 30-yard effort wide and high in keeping with the opening 45 minutes. Scolaris frustration was evident by the touchline, the Brazilian pacing the pitch like an expectant father frustrated by the wait. He was almost satisfied, however, in the 61st minute when Lampards free-kick was met by the ehad of Kalou, but Doni made an impressive save on the line. The pain of the game was ended, for Chelsea at least, when Lampards inswinging corner was flicked in off the head of Terry, the captain scoring his first goal since missing from the penalty spot in Moscow in May. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Independent: Captain fantastic saves day for Chelsea yet again Chelsea 1 AS Roma 0 By Sam Wallace When the beautiful game does not suffice, sometimes the blunt object will have to do and they come no blunter than John Terry's forehead. It was an old-fashioned centre-back's header from the Chelsea captain that settled matters last night, but then you take what you can get against a side as shamelessly defensive as Roma. Later even Luiz Felipe Scolari was talked into admitting that this was hardly the most scintillating Chelsea performance Stamford Bridge has witnessed this season, but do not be fooled by all the talk about winning ugly. Great teams like Chelsea do not ride their luck you would not dare to against a team as predatory as Roma instead they broke their opposition down piece-by-piece and took their chance when it presented itself. Terry nipped in at the near post to nod in Frank Lampard's corner 13 minutes from time and, this being Terry, almost injured himself as he landed awkwardly on his right leg. Until then, Chelsea had found all the normal routes to goal blocked: neither full-back permitted to overlap, no space for Nicolas Anelka to run into, so eventually they took the simplest option of all. This was the kind of Champions League game English teams once lost those tense nights when the opposition pounced to steal a victory. But Chelsea are no Champions League naves. Scolari had warned that his team's football would not always be beautiful although there was a discipline about last night's performance that was beguiling. "I told the players that this would be a tactical game," Scolari said. "I said if we were to pressure this team and make a mistake, we might lose the game. We needed to be calm and score the first goal. After that, it would give us more space. I said it would be a game between two beautiful teams. Sometimes 1-0 is more important than 5-0." Chelsea are top of Champions League Group A with seven points although defeat away to Roma on 4 November will make life awkward for them. Fail there and they still have to play Bordeaux in France and dispose of the Romanians CFR Cluj at Stamford Bridge. Composure will be required in Rome where, as Scolari pointed out, Victor Spalletti's team will have to be rather more adventurous than they were last night. Despite the injuries that have plagued Terry's involvement with England this season, he has played every one of Chelsea's games and is a useful man to have around the penalty area when his team require a goal. "When I was with Portugal and we played England, I was afraid when Terry came up to our area for corner kicks," Scolari said. "I would say to my players 'Look, this player is decisive. We need to look at him because, if he touches the ball, it will be dangerous for us'. Now I'm here and I tell Terry to do that for us. He got to the ball and it was a big moment for us." This new version of Chelsea have Scolari's passion for attacking football running through them but they also have the ice-cold discipline of Jose Mourinho's more prosaic instincts. Roma have the discipline but, on last night's evidence, none of the flair. For much of the game they were content to allow Francesco Totti to forage alone up front chasing lost causes. There would be outrage in this country if Manchester United made Wayne Rooney do the same. For a team currently dawdling along at 14th in Serie A, you could not, however, fault Roma for their preparation. They shut down Chelsea at every opportunity and negated the damage that Lampard and Deco would normally expect to inflict even though the former was always in the game. He clipped the angle of post and bar with a shot on 23 minutes. Only once did Chelsea really look threatened when, in the first half, Totti played a ball through to the Montenegro international Mirko Vucinic who was set to shoot when Terry came crashing in to deflect the ball away. On nights such as these, Chelsea miss the injured Didier Drogba. When he is fit and, more importantly, up for a battle it is Drogba around whom things happen. Anelka just does not inspire the same uncertainty in centre-halves. On the hour Salomon Kalou squandered a very promising free header from Lampard's free-kick from the right. Terry did not make the same mistake when he scored the winner with 13 minutes remaining, running in at the near post to head the ball across the goalkeeper Doni and into the far corner. Later Lampard's blistering free-kick from the right side was tipped over by the Roma goalkeeper. Against Liverpool on Sunday, Scolari said that he hoped it would be a different kind of game. "Yes, I want to play beautiful football against Liverpool," Scolari said. "They are a strong team and they don't fight for 90 minutes, but for 100 minutes. They've won four games this season [with goals] after the 85th minute. We'll need to play very well and we'll need concentration until the referee says the game is over. We will try to play a beautiful game but, more important for us, is that, if we don't play that well, we'll need to score one or two goals to win the match." How often have Chelsea relied upon their two east London boys Terry and Lampard to get them out of difficult situations? Both were excellent last night and they needed to be. Late on in the game, Roma opened up and we were afforded a glimpse of this game as it might have been with Chelsea's full-backs streaming forward and gaps appearing in the Italian team. By then, however, Chelsea had been forced to do it the hard way. Chelsea (4-1-4-1): Cech; Bosingwa, Terry, Carvalho, Bridge; Mikel; Kalou (Di Santo, 77), Deco, Lampard, Malouda (Belletti, 46); Anelka (Ferreira, 90). Substitutes not used: Cudicini (gk), Ivanovic, Alex, Stoch. Roma (4-3-3): Doni; Cicinho, Panucci, Mexes, Riise (Tonetto, 82); De Rossi, Aquilani (Perrotta, 61), Brighi; Vucinic, Taddei (Menez, 81), Totti. Substitutes not used: Artur (gk), Loria, Montella, Okaka Chuka. Referee: K Vassas (Greece). Group A Results: Chelsea 4 Bordeaux 0; Roma 1 CFR Cluj 2; CFR Cluj 0 Chelsea 0; Bordeaux 1 Roma 3; Bordeaux 1 CFR Cluj 0; Chelsea 1 Roma 0. Chelsea's remaining group stage fixtures: 4 Nov: Roma (a); 26 Nov: Bordeaux (a); 9 Dec: CFR Cluj (h). --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Guardian: Terry gets back in the old routine to ease Chelsea's frustrations Chelsea 1 Terry 77 Roma 0 Kevin McCarra at Stamford Bridge John Terry celebrates after scoring the winning goal for Chelsea against Roma. Photograph: Alex Morton/Action Images Chelsea made progress with a backward step. No home supporter could have complained about an old routine when they were overwhelmed with delight that patience was rewarded in this Champions League tie. Their side won with the familiar spectacle, in the 78th minute, of the captain, John Terry, outjumping a marker, Rodrigo Taddei, at the near post to direct Frank Lampard's corner neatly across the goalkeeper, Doni. It was his first goal of this campaign. No effort had been spared to consolidate in the tournament and Chelsea are now three points clear in Group A after Cluj's defeat in Bordeaux. There was, all the same, nothing slick about them, despite the wholly deserved praise that has drenched them of late. The intention, once again under Luiz Felipe Scolari, was for a flexible, flowing style. Opponents, though, inevitably make a study of such an approach and Roma, in a rather featureless game, checked the overlapping of the full-backs, whose vivacity is so significant to Scolari's style. Chelsea did not always stifle their annoyance and Terry, for instance, was rightly cautioned after challenging with a raised boot even though he did not appear to make noteworthy contact on Francesco Totti. Roma probably lost because they wearied in the face of Chelsea's persistence. Their counterattacks grew ever more rare and Scolari will be moderately pleased that they were worn down after the attempts to tear them open with verve had foundered. The side, so early in his tenure, cannot be exactly as he wishes. On occasion Chelsea have been checked, with draws at home to Tottenham and Manchester United as well as away to Cluj. Scolari's team normally transcend the difficulty of counting on a single experienced striker, Nicolas Anelka, while Didier Drogba gets over his knee injury. Strikers, all the same, are not really optional and Chelsea may suffer occasionally from the shortage of them. Resources, overall, are admittedly abundant. Stamford Bridge is a tough place for visitors but it can be harsh, too, for people on the Chelsea payroll. When Scolari saluted the makeshift line-up that beat Middlesbrough 5-0 on Saturday, he hinted that they were ready to challenge for regular inclusion in the first team. This was a touch misleading. The Brazilian manager has been charming ever since he got to London and it turned out that he was treating those players with mere politeness. In practice he could hardly wait to reinstate the established names. So it was, for example, that Carlo Cudicini, Alex and Juliano Belletti dropped to the bench. There was no sense in making Petr Cech, Ricardo Carvalho and Deco wait to regain their starting berths. Roma, however, were not intimidated. Although the vogue for Serie A has dwindled for the time being, these visitors had purpose in their approach as if no one had told them of their reduced status. They were initially brisk and got players behind the ball swiftly. There was, for instance, an exhilarating moment, nine minutes before half-time, when Totti turned smoothly, strode away from Mikel John Obi and set up Matteo Brighi for an attempt which ricocheted off Terry for a corner. The best of Chelsea, at that stage, had come from a set piece awarded for Philippe Mexs's foul on Mikel. Deco rolled the ball to Lampard for a drive which clipped the angle of bar and post. Frustration had started to escalate in the home ranks. Scolari and his men were in a rage, after 42 minutes, when the referee, Kyros Vassaras, let play continue after Deco was felled. Roma mounted a counterattack. After that burst of indignation the interval had to be a period of reflection and Scolari made his adjustments. Belletti took over from Florent Malouda and played on the right wing, and Salomon Kalou switched to the left. There was more dynamism and a relentlessness from midfield in the alteration from 4-3-3 to 4-1-4-1. Belletti's eagerness to run looked set to open up the space that had been denied the right-back Jose Bosingwa. There was still vexation for Chelsea, particularly when Brighi went down and required treatment even though it did not seem that Carvalho had actually made contact with his face. Whatever the means, Luciano Spalletti's side continued to be effective for a while, with the former Liverpool left-back John Arne Riise stubborn as opponents tried to get behind the defence on his flank. It took a free-kick in the 62nd minute to encourage Chelsea. Kalou called for a save from Doni with his header from Lampard's service. That moment hinted at a specific weakness which would ultimately be exploited. By then Roma were at least being confined to their own half. Exasperation was a hazard to Chelsea but the captain ultimately soothed himself and most occupants of the ground. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mail: Chelsea 1 Roma 0: Terry back in business - First goal of season ends Roma resistance By Neil Ashton John Terry will be feeling his back this morning, for sure. It will be sore and stiff, a product of carrying this team across the finishing line against Roma. For 78 minutes at Stamford Bridge last night, Luciano Spallettis team threatened to stop Chelsea scoring on home soil for the first time this season. Enter Terry the Gladiator. Come on, dust off those cliches. Captain Colossus. Captain Courageous. Captain Marvel. Pick your personal favourite He is certainly the fans favourite at Stamford Bridge, with cries of theres only one England captain swirling around the stadium after his headed goal separated the two sides. A ringing endorsement from the supporters and then another from his manager. 'When I was coach of Portugal, I warned my players when we played England that he was dangerous at set-pieces, said Luiz Felipe Scolari. We saw just how dangerous he can be. Unless he counts the goals he scores when he nutmegs his two children in his frequent post-match kickabouts, Terry had not appeared on the scoresheet at Stamford Bridge since Manchester City were thrown to the lions in August 2006. Some wait. There was no sign of the back injury that prevented him playing in Englands World Cup qualifiers against Kazakhstan and Belarus last week. Instead the big man is back. He scored his first goal of the season, rising unannounced at the far post to meet Frank Lampards corner and steering it past Roma keeper Doni. Englands general manager, Franco Baldini, the former technical director at Roma, was in the stands to witness the renaissance. A glowing report will land on Fabio Capellos desk at Soho Square this morning. Chelsea needed this rescue act against the Italians, waiting until the final phase of the game before they finally wore down their resolute defence to put the second stage within touching distance. They are nearly there after two victories (against Bordeaux and Roma) and a draw in Romania against CFR Cluj. Three down, three to play, Chelsea are on the charge. They controlled this game, playing Continental football at the back and stretching Roma to the limits whenever their full backs were released down the wings. Whatever confronts this team, they find a way to combat it. Middlesbroughs chocolate soldiers were melted at the Riverside last Saturday, throwing in the towel the moment Salomon Kalou put them in front. Roma, arriving at Stamford Bridge off the back of a 4-0 defeat against Inter Milan in the Olympic Stadium on Sunday, adjusted accordingly. They flooded the midfield. Spallettis team are a shadow of the side who were 18 minutes away from clinching the league title on the final day of last season, living proof of the fine line between success and failure. Manchester United stuck two past them in Rome in the quarter final last season and Chelsea will have little to fear against this fading force of European football in Italy on November 4. Scolari will demand the point that will almost certainly be enough for his team to qualify for the knockout stages, squeezing their way through a tricky group and into the bear pit that is the second stage. Romas confidence is shot. They are 14th in Serie A, scratching around for a win under Spalletti and still haunted by memories of last seasons near miss when Inter Milan snatched the championship. It is seven years since Roma were champions, when Capello made his mark in a dressing room with characters such as Franceso Totti, Gabriel Batistuta and Vicenzo Montella. They have been longing for another success story ever since. Tottis return - he started only his second game last night since he picked up a knee injury last April - will help with the revival but this Trojan cannot carry this team on his own. His movement allowed Matteo Brighi to home in on goal just before the break but Terrys superbly timed tackle on the edge of the area prevented the unthinkable. Chelsea were brisk and to the point, with every man jack in the team getting a touch, from Petr Cech to Terry to Mikel John Obi to Nicolas Anelka. Mikel, in particular, had an impressive game sitting in front of the back four. Most improved player at Chelsea? Dont speak too soon, but he made the game look easy as he showed by intercepting a through ball on his chest and twisting his way past Totti. It was cheeky, audacious and classy rolled into one. Chelsea are teasing the opposition with their touches, trapping the ball with one foot and then sending it effortlessly on to a team-mate with the other. Blue shirts buzz in every direction, demanding the ball and then sending it Special Delivery into the path of another. Little wonder Scolari is happy. So, too, are Chelseas supporters, lapping up their progressive football with sell out stadiums for the group games. Scolari had promised to serve up beautiful football for starters. Typically, Terry applied the finishing touch. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sun: Chelsea 1 Roma 0 From SHAUN CUSTIS at Stamford Bridge PHIL SCOLARI reckons John Terry is so committed to the Chelsea cause he would die for the club. But, last night, Terry delivered the mortal blow which killed off Roma after another heroic display on the field of battle. Captain John George Terry was at his imperious best at both ends of the pitch, making two superb tackles to keep the Italians out in the first half before rising to head home Frank Lampards corner to clinch Blues victory 12 minutes from time. Terry was gutted to miss Englands World Cup qualifying wins over Kazakhstan and Belarus with a bad back and there were whispers that manager Fabio Capello was surprised at his skippers quick comeback for Chelsea. But Terry will proudly take up arms for both club and country as long as he can put one foot in front of the other. Capellos assistant Franco Baldini was at the Bridge last night and can only have been hugely impressed by Terrys display. Scolari had warned us his team might not always produce the bright free-flowing football which has characterised the start of his Chelsea reign. Sometimes, he said, the fans might just have to be happy with three points. And so it came to pass. This was more a display from the Jose Mourinho era and a damp squib after Saturdays 5-0 win at Middlesbrough. Chelsea remain on course to qualify for the Champions League last 16, although Roma defied the form book for most of the game. Their manager Luciano Spalletti is feeling the heat with his team 14th in Serie A after crashing 4-0 at home to Inter Milan last weekend. But the Italians played with a surprising amount of confidence, particularly in the first half, and were prepared to attack Chelsea rather than just sit back and soak up the pressure. Terry made one sensational challenge on Matteo Brighi on the edge of the box as the striker threatened to break through, then blocked a fizzer from Alberto Aquilani. The closest either side came to scoring before the break was when Deco touched a free-kick into Lampards path and the resultant drive grazed the top of the crossbar. Salomon Kalou also had a go from a tight angle with an effort which was swallowed up by keeper Doni at his near post but it was fairly turgid fare. Juliano Belletti replaced Florent Malouda at half-time and the moment the Brazilian touched the ball the crowd were yelling at him to shoot. Belletti scored from 30 yards at the Riverside and amusingly got suckered into trying a repeat which, perhaps predictably, finished in the stands. Roma tried to get down the flanks with the familiar face of John Arne Riise pushing on from left-back. The former Liverpool man is fondly remembered by Blues fans. Riises last goal was FOR Chelsea in last seasons Champions League semi-final he put through his own net in the final minute to gift the Blues a vital first-leg draw. But Nicolas Anelka got away from him after 50 minutes and flicked an effort just wide. Kalou should also have put Chelsea in front just after the hour but he directed a free header too close to Doni and the keeper saved. The pressure was cranking up on the visitors and John Obi Mikels strike only went wide because it deflected off his own man Anelka. As time marched on, Terry took the responsibility on himself to get the job done as he timed a near-post run to perfection and, from six yards, glanced a header beyond the helpless Doni. Terry stayed down under a mountain of celebrating team-mates and for a moment there were worries he had been wounded. But he eventually dragged himself back to his feet and punched the air in delight. Roma had nothing left to give and it was just a case of whether Chelsea could get any more. But Doni denied Lampard, tipping over his 30-yard free-kick. Liverpool are next up at the Bridge for a titanic Premier League clash on Sunday. And with another win on the board and no goals conceded in their last six games, Scolaris men show no signs of cracking. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mirror: Chelsea 1-0 Roma: John Terry ensures Chelsea stay up Captain John Terry ensured Chelsea stayed top of Champions League Group A with a 77th-minute match-winner against Roma. Terry outwitted his marker to head home a corner from Frank Lampard. The goal ended Roma's stubborn resistance which, until Terry struck, had threatened to earn them a surprise point. Chelsea coach Luiz Felipe Scolari welcomed back goalkeeper Petr Cech and defender Ricardo Carvalho after injury. Deco was given a starting role in midfield with Nicolas Anelka a lone attacker. England midfielder Joe Cole was not fit enough to be considered. Roma captain Francesco Totti returned to lead the struggling Italians. He played 70 minutes against Inter Milan last weekend after recovering from a knee injury. Chelsea coach Luiz Felipe Scolari had promised the fans more of the same kind of beautiful football that had put them on top of the Barclays Premier League. Roma, a team struggling in the lower reaches of Serie A, were not expected to upset Chelsea's European momentum even though Luciano Spalletti had called for his team to put an end to their poor form. The opening few minutes saw Chelsea enjoy the lion's share of the possession with the impish Deco pulling the strings in midfield. But eight minutes had elapsed before Chelsea's first real attempt on goal - a 20-yard volley from Frank Lampard that Doni dealt with effectively. In the 21st minute a rare attacking drive from John Mikel Obi brought a booking for Philippe Mexes when he brought the Nigerian crashing down on the edge of the penalty area. However, Lampard saw his effort cannon into the crowd after smashing against the angle of upright and crossbar. It was the nearest either side had come to breaking the stalemate and it provided the home with fresh impetus. In the 27th minute Deco set Kalou free on the right but the striker's shot was lacking in power and accuracy and Doni again collected safely. Two minutes later Malouda was booked by referee Kyros Vassaras for shirt pulling. Chelsea's performance was now verging on ugly rather than beautiful with little to enthuse about. Time and again full-back Jose Bosingwa wasted the chance to supply a telling cross into the penalty area. Roma were more than happy to stop Chelsea trying to play their way through the middle with Alberto Aquilani particularly impressive. It required a superb tackle from Chelsea captain John Terry to prevent Matteo Brighi from opening the scoring in the 35th minute. Terry dived in to deflect the ball for a corner after a superb piece of skill from Francesco Totti had set up Brighi. Lampard tried his luck at the other end after Deco had bamboozled the Roma defence with a clever back-heel but the England midfielder was again off target. Scolari was incensed four minutes before the interval when Deco was brought down on the edge of the penalty area but the Greek official opted to let the home side play on. Scolari replaced Malouda during the interval with Juliano Belletti and he immediately sent a 20-yard drive high into the crowd. Roma were forced to make a change on the hour when Aquilani suffered a hamstring injury and was replaced by Simone Perrotta. Moments later Kalou brought an outstanding save from Doni with a firm header. Chelsea were beginning to get on top once more but the cutting edge remained noticeably absent. Mikel sent a 25-yard drive well wide of the target as Chelsea struggled to find a way beyond the Roma rearguard. A fine ball from Deco was squandered by Kalou when the Ivory Coast striker sent over a tame cross that was easily dealt with by Christian Panucci. Roma were happy to settle for a point and with Totti offering a solo option in attack, the onus was on Chelsea to make the breakthrough. That almost arrived in the 67th minute when a 20-yard shot from Mikel was deflected over the bar by Anelka. Bosingwa continued to press down the right flank but when he provided a decent cross into the penalty area, it was quickly dealt with by Roma's defence. But the deadlock was finally broken by England captain Terry in the 77th minute when he slipped his marker and headed a corner from Lampard into the net. Lampard almost made it two in the 83rd minute but Doni reacted quickly to tip his long-range free-kick over the bar. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Express: TERRY'S ALL GOLD YET AGAIN FOR BLUES Thursday October 23,2008 By Tony Banks CHELSEA..1 ROMA..0 LUIZ FELIPE SCOLARI called him fantastic in the build-up to this game. Savaged by those who questioned his commitment to club or country, last night, once again, John Terry showed just why every Chelsea boss comes to rely on him. A 78th-minute header finally broke the deadlock against a stubborn Roma side who arrived and shut up shop. But Chelseas own centurion, so often their saviour and inspiration, broke the wall Luciano Spallettis legions had erected and allowed his side to put one foot in the knockout stages. This was a war of attrition, unlike recent romps for Chelsea. But once again their sheer quality emerged, thanks to their skippers first goal of the season. Scolari produced a surprise when he brought back Ricardo Carvalho after a five-match gap through knee ligament problems. Also returning was Deco, starting his first game in a month after his thigh injury. A further boost for a side who hardly needed it was the return of goalkeeper Petr Cech. There could hardly have been greater contrast in the shape these sides found themselves in going into last nights game. Chelsea are rampant, top of the Premier League and unbeaten in their 11 games under Scolari. They have been playing football that is sweeping all before them and are without a goal against in five matches. Spallettis Roma arrived knowing that various bodies are looking to buy their club, having been thumped 4-0 at home by Inter Milan on Sunday and lying a miserable 14th in Serie A. Wily old fox Scolari was, though, unlikely to be fooled. This was a side who got to the quarter-finals last year, and were narrow runners-up in Italy. Scolari said in the build-up that though he liked the fact people were loving Chelseas football, he would just be happy with another three points. It was clear why in a cagey opening spell. Frank Lampards measured volley that was well held by Doni was a rare break as Roma flooded the midfield in an attempt to stifle the game. But soon the irrepressible Blue tide found their rhythm and were pressing and probing. When Mikel John Obi was brought down, Deco and Lampard combined for the latter to arrow in a drive that had Doni beaten but agonisingly clipped the angle. Then, Salomon Kalou saw his low shot saved as Francesco Totti was left a lonely figure up front with Roma trying to weather wave upon wave of attacks. However, there was a warning when 33-year-old Totti slipped a clever pass through, and only a great tackle from an alert Terry stopped Matteo Brighi. Immediately, though, Lampard was cutting a drive just wide. It was clear that this was not going to be another Riverside romp, such as Chelsea had enjoyed in their 5-0 rout of Middlesbrough on Saturday. Roma might not be the force they were when winning the Italian title seven years ago under Fabio Capello but they are no mugs. Lampard was looking for his 19th goal in Europe, which would have made him Chelseas record scorer outside domestic competition, having previously been level with the injured Didier Drogba. But it was not going to come easy. Florent Malouda, an ineffective figure in the first half, was replaced by Juliano Belletti as Chelsea looked for more penetration. As Scolari paced the touchline, arms waving in frustration, Doni saved Roma again as he plunged superbly to parry Kalous header from another accurate Lampard free-kick. Romas massed legions were proving hard to break down, though. Only Tottenham, amazingly, and Manchester United, have denied Chelsea victory this season, but you sensed that Scolari had known this one was going to be tough. The beautiful football flowed. It was just that this Roman army are battle-hardened. They have been here before, earning their colours on the field. Mikel saw his shot deflected just over the angle with Doni helpless, as Chelsea pressed even harder. If the breakthrough was going to come, you sensed, it would be from the Lampard-Deco axis as Nicolas Anelka was a subdued, surrounded figure. At last it came. Lampard, typically, swung in the corner and Terry threw himself into the fray to glance home a header. He might be struggling from game to game with the bad back that has frustrated England and Capello but no man stands taller or prouder for his club. Chelsea's gladiator had saved the day yet again. Chelsea (4-1-3-2): Cech; Bosingwa, Carvalho, Terry, Bridge; Mikel; Deco, Lampard, Malouda (Belletti 46); Kalou (Di Santo 77), Anelka (Ferreira 90). Goal: Terry 78. Roma (4-2-3-1): Doni; Cicinho, Panucci, Mexes, Riise (Tonetto 82); De Rossi, Brighi; Taddei (Menez 81), Aquilani (Perrotta 60), Vucinic; Totti. Booked: Mexes, Panucci. Referee: K Vassaras (Greece).