Wigan 4-1

Independent:

Frank Lampard scored his 198th Chelsea goal to seal victory over Wigan, end a four-match winless run and ease the pressure on interim boss Rafael Benitez.
Glenn Moore

Hold the tumbrils, put away the scaffold, Rafa Benitez survives for another week. Probably, since nothing is certain at Chelsea. It was close, though. Had Mike Dean not decided Ashley Cole’s 71st-minute handball was inadvertent when he blocked Ronnie Stam’s shot in the penalty area the executioner may have been put to work.
Having barely got out of their own half Wigan had just halved Chelsea’s lead and nerves were  fluttering all over Stamford Bridge. “If we had got the equaliser the end of the game would have been very interesting,” said Wigan’s manager, Roberto Martinez.
But Dean waved Wigan’s claims away and Chelsea provided a flattering gloss to the scoreline with two goals in the last four minutes. One of them, inevitably, came from Frank Lampard, who finally scored with his seventh effort of the game to take his Chelsea tally to 198, four behind Bobby Tambling’s club record. “Sign him up” came the familiar chant from the stands. Ramires, Eden Hazard and Marko Marin, with his first for the club, were Chelsea’s other scorers as they regained the third place Tottenham Hotspur had stolen into by beating Newcastle earlier in the day.
Wigan, whose reply came from Shaun Maloney, remain rooted in the bottom three with one win in 13 matches. Afterwards Benitez dismissed conjecture about his future had Chelsea’s winless run extended to five games as “just speculation”. He added: “We could have scored six. There were a lot of positives.”
According to the cliché, winning without playing well is a mark of champions, but in Chelsea’s case yesterday it simply reflected a team low on confidence and fluidity. Fortunately for them Wigan have the same problem, but without the quality of player to compensate.
Tottenham’s win had piled on the pressure for, as Andre Villas-Boas discovered last year, the one thing Roman Abramovich and his court will not countenance is the prospect of missing out on Champions’ League qualification.
Benitez responded by picking Fernando Torres ahead of Demba Ba, who was left on the bench nursing his broken nose, Petr Cech, despite a broken finger, and Hazard, following the conclusion of his ban for the ball-boy incident at Swansea. The interim manager was still without John Obi Mikel and Victor Moses, set to play for Nigeria in the Africa Cup of Nations final today, but Martinez had Arona Koné back from South Africa and on the bench.
A post-international week is often a good time to play the Premier League’s bigger sides, but the majority of Chelsea’s team had travelled no further than north London, with six of the starting XI on duty at Wembley on Wednesday, three on each side. Nevertheless it was a slow start, Torres’s powder-puff shot into Ali Al Habsi’s arms being Chelsea’s only threatening moment in the first quarter. The No 9 shirt weighs so heavily on the Spaniard these days it could be made of chain mail but, while this was the first of three bad misses he did contribute. Torres’s eagerness in pressing the ball made it hard for Wigan to play out from the back and his efforts were instrumental in Chelsea’s opener.
However long Benitez lasts in west London he will leave one legacy; the conversion of David Luiz from a fallible central defender into an influential holding midfielder. It was Luiz who broke from midfield as Wigan lost possession with players committed forward.
The Brazilian played the ball forward to Torres, who was allowed by Gary Caldwell to turn and play a clever first-time pass into the path of Ramires, whose chipped finish was excellent.
The goal was the result of Chelsea targeting the flanks left exposed by Wigan’s three-man defence and so was their second 10 minutes after the break. Gary Cahill released Cesar Azpiliueta down the right and his cross was swept in by Hazard.
Once that would have been game over, but this Chelsea struggle to close out games. A minute later Shaun Maloney’s angled run behind Branislav Ivanovic was picked out by James McArthur and Maloney rounded Cech to score. Then came the penalty incident. “It was a good shot which would have been difficult for Cech to save,” said Martinez. “It is clearly a block, then it is down to [the referee’s] interpretation. I have seen them given. The defender’s arm was not attached to his body.”
For his part, Benitez said: “It was too close [to give].” It took Lampard to end the fretting, drilling home Hazard’s pass aided by a clever dummy by Juan Mata.
Wigan then crumbled and Marin headed in after Al Habsi denied Azpilicueta. Even Torres should have scored, but the Omani goalkeeper produced a superb double save to deny him and Ramires.
Chelsea now face a trio of cup matches, the FA Cup fourth-round replay against Brentford being sandwiched by two Europa League ties with Sparta Prague, before they travel to Manchester City in the Premier League. Best not to stand down the executioner just yet.

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Cech; Azpiliceuta, Cahill (Benayoun, 87) Ivanovic, Cole; Luiz, Lampard; Ramires, Oscar (Mata, 76)  Hazard (Marin, 90); Torres.
Wigan (3-5-1-1): Al Habsi; Scharner, Caldwell, Figueroa; Stam (Jones, 83), McCarthy, McArthur, Maloney, Beausejour; Espinoza (Koné, 60); Di Santo.

Referee: Mike Dean.
Man of the match: Luiz (Chelsea)
Match rating: 5/10

=================

Observer:

Chelsea's Frank Lampard eases nerves with goal No198 against Wigan

Dominic Fifield at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea will feel they have turned a corner. This contest had actually been fraught for a while, the home side's lead halved and Wigan outraged at the non-award of a penalty for handball against Ashley Cole, with all the memories of those recent capitulations to Southampton, Reading and Newcastle creeping back. There was panic in the ranks and anxiety in the stands, and yet they survived, regained composure and eventually prospered. Perhaps lessons are being learned.
Rafael Benítez can sleep a little easier after this, any doubts among the hierarchy over his ability to deliver Champions League qualification during his interim stewardship presumably shelved for a while. This was a first victory in five games in all competitions, and keeps fifth-placed Arsenal at arm's length. The manager did roll his eyes in the post-match inquest, though only in a knowing way as the questions drifted inevitably back to a familiar subject.
It was Frank Lampard who had eased the nerves and, if the veteran's class is permanent, so, too, are the calls for his Chelsea career to be extended beyond the summer. "In the last two months he's scored 10 goals, so I'm really pleased," said Benítez with the chairman, Bruce Buck, watching on from the audience. "He is fit, his understanding of the game is fine, and he can score goals. If he breaks the club record, I'll be really pleased." Asked how long a player who registered a winner in midweek against Brazil can excel at this level, Benítez said: "If he's available for Thursday night in Prague, I'll be really pleased."
Goal 198, edging him ever closer to Bobby Tambling's club record of 202, had been timely, a calm and assured finish fizzed into the corner from the edge of the area after Eden Hazard has squared and Juan Mata dummied. The outpouring of relief among the crowd quickly gave way to that familiar chorus of "sign him up" but, if the club's insistence that the time has come for a parting of the ways is maybe now not quite as set in stone as it once was, the player still awaits a call with a concrete offer. The guessing game is likely to be extended to the summer.
When the 34-year-old makes an impact like this, it is hard to fathom the logic in dispensing with his services. His is a reassuring presence, but his ability to change games makes him invaluable.
Chelsea had been drifting, with Wigan dismayed that Cole's block with an arm from Ronnie Stam's shot, albeit from a few feet away, had not been deemed worthy of a spot kick. "I tell mydefenders not to put themselves in a position where they could concede a penalty like that," said Roberto Martínez. "The shot was on target, and the defender should have had his arm 'attached' to his body so it couldn't have been given. I've seen them too often given against Wigan Athletic."
The Wigan manager could feel aggrieved that his side's flurry of pressure immediately after Chelsea's second goal did not yield parity. Shaun Maloney's skip on to James McArthur's fine chipped pass had culminated in a swerve around Petr Cech and finish into an empty net.
That had prompted the hosts to be jittery but where they had been guilty recently of missing opportunities to settle contests like this, the ruthlessness of old returned. Lampard's third was swiftly followed by Marko Marin's first for the club after the excellent César Azpilicueta had forced Ali al-Habsi to push away a swerving attempt. The gloss had been applied.
Chelsea were always the more dominant side, just as they had been against Southampton and Reading. Their opening goal had been slickly crafted by three of Benítez's bolder selections, David Luiz striding through central midfield and sliding a pass through to Fernando Torres. The striker shifted the ball on instantly, his delivery inside Maynor Figueroa liberating a galloping Ramires in a right-midfield brief, with the Brazilian's finish emphatic.
There is always a risk leaving Mata out of this team, but the management have options returning. Hazard, converting Azpilicueta's delivery, was making his return after the three-game ban following his clash with a ballboy at Swansea. "Now we have options, so we can manage the game in a different way," said Benítez.
His compatriot in the opposite dug-out has more reason for concern. Wigan have won once in 14 league games and will be reliant, yet again, on a late-season rally if they are to haul themselves above the cut-off. "It's a real concern," said Martínez. "But it's the last third of the competition where everything happens. We'll need everyone back from injury and to be perfect, but we have an exciting time ahead of us."
That represented positive spin in trying times, something Benítez has also grown accustomed to delivering.


================

Telegraph:

Chelsea 4 Wigan Athletic 1
Jason Burt

They came to bury Caesar, not to praise him. Defeat — even a draw, which appeared likely at one stage of this nervy contest — could have spelt the end for Rafael Benítez as Chelsea’s interim manager. But, instead, the goals and the relief came and the César in question was César Azpilicueta, another Spaniard, who was comfortably his team’s man of the match and gained the plaudits.
The attention, however, will inevitably turn to Frank Lampard – and why not? In a week in which the focus again was on whether or not the 34-year-old would be offered a new contract — no deal at present — he scored. Again. It is now 198 goals for the midfielder, four in his last four Premier League games, and 10 in 14 games, and more pertinently he is now just four behind Bobby Tambling’s all-time Chelsea record of 202.
His goal on Saturday was of vital importance as it settled the result just as Wigan, with one win in 13 league matches, and sitting in the relegation places, were pushing for the equaliser that could have shoved the beleaguered Benítez over the brink. Almost as pivotal was a penalty appeal turned down, with the score at a precarious 2-1, when Ashley Cole blocked a Ronnie Stam shot with his arm, but referee Mike Dean was unmoved.
“It is a difficult decision,” Wigan manager Roberto Martínez said. “I have seen them given.”
Instead Chelsea reclaimed third sport, leapfrogging Tottenham Hotspur with a sugar-coated final scoreline, and Benítez can expect to survive as long as he holds that position. Well, probably.
Ties at home to Brentford, in theFA Cup, and Sparta Prague, in the Europa League, are followed by a momentous league match away to Manchester City. But do not underestimate how crucial this fixture was either.
It halted a run of four matches without a win but Benítez was irked when asked about his future. “It was just speculation,” he said. “Nobody is in contact with the owner [Roman Abramovich] to find out if he says this or that. It’s just speculation. I have to concentrate on winning games. You have to win: if you want to compete to win something, you have to concentrate on that.
“It’s not the end of the world if you draw a game you deserve to win. The problem for me would be if we didn’t create chances. We always do.”
He has a point. His position is precarious but Chelsea are not playing badly and he will be able to argue that with reinforcements arriving — players returning from the Africa Cup of Nations and from injury — then the situation can be expected to improve but while there was no anti-Benítez protest there was a degree of indifference which was almost as worrying.
Instead the fans focused on Lampard’s future with more chants of “sign him up” after he superbly drove home a low shot, when substitute Juan Mata stepped over Eden Hazard’s cut back, to beat Ali Al-Habsi from the edge of the penalty area.
Chelsea had began sloppily and while Fernando Torres’s build-up play was impressive, his finishing poor. He wasted several chances before playing a fine first-time pass into the path of Ramires who sprinted on and coolly bent his shot around the goalkeeper to open the scoring.
The relief was palpable but Wigan scented they were still in the contest and Franco Di Santo was unfortunate when he worked his way in behind the Chelsea defence only to over-hit his pullback with Jean Beausejour beckoning.
Immediately Chelsea broke and Azpilicueta cut back inside to find Hazard who struck a first-time shot that easily beat Al-Habsi.
Game over? Not a chance. Within 90 seconds Wigan hit back through Shaun Maloney who sprang the offside trap, with Branislav Ivanovic losing concentration, to run onto James McArthur’s lofted through ball. Petr Cech hurtled from his goal-line but was not quick enough and, from a tight angle, Maloney steered his shot beyond Gary Cahill as he desperately tried to cover the goal.
Lampard shot narrowly wide before there was the Wigan penalty appeal — and then the Chelsea captain did strike. Although it did not end Wigan’s resistance there was no way back and, in injury time, substitute Marko Marin added a fourth after Al-Habsi could only parry Azpilicueta’s powerful shot into his path and he headed home.
There could have been a fifth but, inevitably, Torres fluffed it after Ramires shot was parried and the ball fell to him. His effort was too deliberate and Al-Habsi recovered.

==============

Mail:

Chelsea 4 Wigan 1: Rafa gets a stay of execution as Lampard strikes again

By ROB DRAPER

By the end, it all looked remarkably comfortable. Chelsea had won 4-1, Frank Lampard had edged another step closer to Bobby Tambling's record and Rafa Benitez could relax for a few days, at least.
Yet that summary was far removed from what might have been at Stamford Bridge yesterday.

The fate of managers and their reputations turns on horribly fine margins. And as Chelsea laboured in the final quarter of this game, as the crowd grew restless and as another twogoal lead looked like being threatened, Wigan's Ronnie Stam unleashed a shot that Ashley Cole handled in the penalty area.

Everyone waited for Mike Dean's whistle, and those of us of a neutral disposition prepared for the vitriol you knew was coming.

Chelsea are an accident waiting to happen these days - or more accurately they are a club where any setback, however minor, is seen to legitimise a cacophony of abuse directed at the manager.
But that whistle never came. Whether Dean judged the hand-ball accidental or the proximity too close to get his hand out of the way, or whether he simply missed it, was unclear.

But on such moments, football matches turn; entire careers, too.
'It was a good shot and it was going very close to the post and it would have been difficult for Petr Cech,' said Wigan manager Roberto Martinez.

'It's one that I've seen given and not given. I've seen them too often given against Wigan and I haven't seen given too much in the other box.'

To Martinez's credit, he did not seize on the incident as a major theme, questioning instead his side's incisiveness in that key period when they were able to prey on the vulnerability of Chelsea.

'We were in their defensive box enough times to get the equaliser and, if we had, the ending of the game would have been very, very interesting,' said the Spaniard.

For, despite that evident fragility about Chelsea - not helped by Oscar having to be withdrawn for Juan Mata, who was suffering from a virus but who came on nonetheless - Wigan could only boast of a strike from Arouna Kone on 82 minutes, despite enjoying plentiful possession.

Benitez said that his team have worked on their shape in such situations after the capitulations at Reading and Newcastle and at home to Southampton.

More pertinently, he suggested, the ability to make changes, with squad players returning from injury and from the Africa Cup of Nations, will shore up the team.

But Wigan had started well, with Franco Di Santo's early shot being saved by Cech, while the goalkeeper did well to gather Shaun Maloney's curling effort on seven minutes.

Fernando Torres responded with a flicked header that went just wide on 15 minutes and a good turn but a weak shot a minute later.

But the striker was instrumental in Chelsea's opener, providing a delightful flick-on from David Luiz's through-ball for Ramires, who took a touch before curling the ball past Ali Al Habsi.

Torres went close again on 27 and 33 minutes before Cesar Azpilicueta was required to head clear on 42 minutes from Maloney's teasing cross.

The full-back, who made his Spain debut last week, was instrumental in the second goal, sprinting away down the right to pick up Gary Cahill's chipped free-kick, cutting back inside and pulling the ball back for Eden Hazard to finish from the edge of the box on 56 minutes.

Chelsea should then have imposed their control on the game. Instead, within two minutes, the old insecurities returned.

James McArthur played a superb ball over the top of Chelsea's back four and Maloney proved its equal, rounding Cech and finishing well from a tight angle.

'The goal we scored was as good as you'll see,' said Martinez.

And so followed that 20-minute period in which the ghost of leads thrown away haunted the atmosphere all around; on the bench they must have dreaded it, in the stands they feared it and, judging by the frantic defending, on the pitch it seemed they half-expected it.

In the end it was Lampard who provided the necessary reassurance with his 198th Chelsea goal, now four short of a club record.

He owed much to Hazard's burst down the left, cut-back and cross - and to Mata's dummy - before driving in from the edge of the box in characteristic fashion.

And a familiar refrain of 'Sign him up' echoed around the stadium. That was on 87 minutes and the first moment that Chelsea could truly relax, which enabled them to add to their total.

Azpilicueta's fine shot forced a one-handed save from Al Habsi in injury-time, and it fell nicely for Marko Marin, who struck first time to score his first goal for Chelsea.

==============

Mirror:

Chelsea 4-1 Wigan Athletic 198 not out: Frank Lampard approaches double-century as Chelsea cruise to victory against Wigan
Matt Law

IT wasn’t exactly a Rafa love-in at Stamford Bridge, but there was finally some relief for Chelsea’s interim boss.
And it was no surprise that it was Frank Lampard who finally calmed the nerves of Benitez by moving to within four goals of becoming the club’s all-time ­leading scorer.
With the Roman Abramovich axe hovering over his head already, Benitez needed a win – no matter how it came.
The result may look impressive, but this was no stroll in the park for Chelsea against relegation-threatened Wigan.
It was not until Lampard netted his 198th Chelsea goal with four minutes remaining that the home side could finally relax.
There may soon be a contract offer on the table for Lampard, even though it is ­unlikely to match what LA Galaxy, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain are prepared to give him. Benitez can also feel grateful to ­referee Mike Dean, who turned down a strong penalty appeal from Wigan that would have given the visitors the chance to make it 2-2.
Ramires, Eden Hazard and ­substitute Marko Marin joined Lampard on the scoresheet. But a Shaun Maloney goal had ­ensured Chelsea were not sure of securing all three points until they netted twice late on.
Benitez said: “I’m pleased ­because the team worked very hard. You could see the commitment of the players.
“Lampard is fit and his ­understanding of the game is fine. He can score goals. If he scores 20 goals and breaks the record, I’ll be really pleased.” But Wigan boss Roberto Martinez was less happy. He said: “We left ourselves a bit ­exposed late on. The scoreline wasn’t a fair reflection, but we wanted a ­positive result, so I had to stretch the game. They took advantage of that on the counter-attack.”
Benitez took a gamble by ­leaving Juan Mata and Demba Ba on the bench. He put his faith in Fernando Torres, pushing David Luiz into midfield and asking Ramires to play ­further upfield.
The bold move paid off in the 23rd minute, as Luiz and Torres ­combined to set up Ramires to score the opener. Luiz hit a pass into the feet of ­Torres and the Spaniard played a wonderful ball through for Ramires, who beat Wigan keeper Ali Al Habsi with a cool finish.
Chelsea had looked nervous before taking the lead. Former Blues striker Franco Di Santo forced Petr Cech to save with his foot and the keeper produced a good save to deny Maloney.
Torres wasted two good first-half chances to get on the scoresheet himself. First, he shot straight at Al Habsi after turning past Paul Scharner.
And the Spaniard beat Scharner again, this time to a Cesar ­Azpilicueta cross, but the striker’s header was saved ­acrobatically by Al Habsi. It should have been game over for Chelsea, as the home side ­doubled their lead 11 minutes into the second period.
A long ball out of defence from Gary Cahill set Azpilicueta away down the right and he rolled the ball into the penalty area for the unmarked Hazard to score.
But Chelsea shot themselves in the foot straight away. Hazard stupidly lost the ball to Scharner and James McArthur’s pass over the top sent Maloney away.
Cech rushed from his line, but Maloney comfortably rounded the home keeper and rolled the ball into the empty net – much to the disgust of Benitez.
The hearts of the Chelsea fans were in their mouths with 16 minutes left as Wigan appealed for a penalty after Ronnie Stam’s shot hit Ashley Cole. Referee Dean ruled no penalty, but ­replays showed the ball had clearly hit Cole’s arm.
With four minutes left, Chelsea were able to breathe easy when Lampard ­netted his latest effort before sub Marin completed the scoring with a late header.
But Benitez will know deep down this was a stay of execution rather than a reprieve.

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

Sun:

Chelsea 4 Wigan 1

Matt Irwin

WHEN Frank Lampard was told just before Christmas that he would not be getting a new contract it would have been easy for him to have chucked in the Chelsea towel.
But that is not the Lampard way.
And while too many of his colleagues have gone missing in recent weeks, Super Frank has redoubled his efforts to keep the Blues on course for Champions League qualification.
Since that bad news was delivered to him at the World Club Championships in Japan, Lampard has scored a staggering nine goals in 15 games.
Chuck in Wednesday’s Wembley winner for England against Brazil and it represents one of the most productive periods of his remarkable career.
He was at it again yesterday, easing Stamford Bridge nerves just when it looked as though Chelsea were going to chuck away another three points.
Lampard struck in the 87th minute with an unerring low shot into the bottom corner after Juan Mata had dummied Eden Hazard’s cross.
That was goal number 198 for the Blues, leaving him just four short of Bobby Tambling’s club record.
It is no longer a question of if he can break that milestone before the end of season. It is simply a matter of when.
It would be no wonder if the club were having second thoughts about allowing the 34-year-old to leave at the end of the season.
There might not be any contract talks pencilled in just yet, but even an owner as rich as Roman Abramovich surely appreciates the value of a genuine world-class star.
Chelsea supporters are certainly unanimous in their desire to keep Lampard at the Bridge for the rest of his career, with the all-too familiar chants of “Sign him up’ echoing around the stadium.
And even though interim manager Rafa Benitez will not be allowed any say on Lamps’ long-term future, his relief at such a regular and reliable source of goals was there for all to see.
After four games without a win and with fans baying for his blood, he knew that nothing but victory against a struggling Wigan side would be enough to keep him in his job.
They started the game fourth in the Premier League table thanks to Tottenham’s lunchtime win against Newcastle — and in serious danger of being swallowed up by the chasing pack.
Wigan, encouraged by Chelsea’s recent failures to beat QPR, Southampton, Swansea, Brentford and Reading, certainly fancied their chances of adding to Rafa’s misery.
Franco Di Santo and Shaun Maloney both had early chances which were saved by keeper Petr Cech, who played despite breaking a finger in last weekend’s 3-2 defeat at Newcastle.
And even when David Luiz and Fernando Torres combined to carve the visitors open for Ramires to fire the hosts into a 23rd minute lead, no one at the Bridge was taking three points for granted.
Spanish striker Torres was denied by a tremendous save from Ali Al Habsi and Wigan skipper Gary Caldwell hacked one clear from his own six-yard box before a spectacular disagreement with his own keeper.
Yet Wigan still fancied their chances.
And only a vital last-ditch header from Cesar Azpilicueta prevented James McArthur from getting on the end of Maloney’s inviting cross.
It should have been game over 11 minutes into the second-half when Gary Cahill’s raking long ball picked out the excellent Azpilicueta behind the Wigan defence.
The full-back rolled a pass into the danger zone for Hazard to celebrate the end of his recent three-match ban for that infamous ball-boy incident with a neat finish.
But nothing is ever that straightforward with Chelsea any more and the days when they could just shut up shop and squeeze the life out of the opposition are long gone.
That two-goal lead lasted just 90 seconds before Hazard lost the ball to Paul Scharner and McArthur’s long pass allowed Maloney to spring the offside trap and beat Cech from the tightest of angles.
Benitez’s whole life was suddenly flashing before his eyes as he faced up to another late capitulation and the dreaded tap on the shoulder from one of Red Rom’s henchman.
With 15 minutes to go, Wigan were convinced they should have been awarded a penalty when Ronnie Stam’s powerful shot was blocked by the outstretched arm of Ashley Cole.
But referee Mike Dean correctly ruled the Chelsea defender was far too close to the Dutchman to get out of the way and he waved away Roberto Martinez’s frenzied appeals from the technical area.
It was just the break Chelsea needed and with the relegation-threatened visitors forced to throw caution to the wind Lampard’s strike on the counter-attack ended any thoughts of yet another Bridge collapse.
There was even time for Marko Marin to claim his first Premier League goal, heading in on the rebound after Al Habsi had failed to hold Azpilicueta’s stoppage-time shot.
Marin came on, scored and was booked inside three crazy minutes in injury time.
It was enough to take Chelsea back up to third place and even reignite ambitions of pinching runners-up spot from fading Manchester City.
But do not be fooled by the final score.
This was another nervy 90 minutes at the Bridge and Rafa is not out of the woods yet.

DREAM TEAM

STAR MAN - AZPILICUETA

CHELSEA: Cech 8, Azpilicueta 8, Ivanovic 6, Cahill 7 (Benayoun 5), Cole 6, Luiz 7, Ramires 7, Oscar 5 (Mata 5), Lampard 7, Hazard 6 (Marin 6), Torres 7. Subs not used: Turnbull, Ferreira, Ba, Bertrand. Booked: Marin.

WIGAN: Al Habsi 6, Stam 5 (Jones 5), Scharner 6, Caldwell 7, Figueroa 6, McCarthy 6, McArthur 7, Beausejour 6, Espinoza 5 (Kone 6), Maloney 7, Di Santo 6. Subs not used: Robles, Henriquez, Gomez, McManaman, Golobart.
Att: 41,562
Ref: Mike Dean (Wirral).

================

Express:

Chelsea 4 - Wigan 1: Rafa Benitez lift as Lamps lights way

John Richardson

Defeat at home to Wigan would have left Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich in a predicament – what to do with the interim manager.
Suddenly a dead man walking – Benitez has no chance of taking the job on a full time basis – would have been a dead man going through the Stamford Bridge exit door.
At least any call for thankful employees like the Russian’s big mate Guus Hiddink can be placed on hold for the time being, leaving Benitez to concentrate on forthcoming Europa League and FA Cup issues.
By the end of the season – if he lasts that long – Benitez will be worked up into a lather judging by his eccentric gesticulations in the technical dug out.
This is a side who can’t hold onto leads. Three had disappeared in the previous four games so no wonder Benitez looked on with increasing anxiety as a 2-0 advantage was cut in half and Wigan scented blood. There were justifiable claims for a penalty, too, as Wigan went in search of the equaliser. Ronnie Stam fired in a shot which appeared to strike the outstretched hand of Ashley Cole inside the box.
To a man Wigan appealed but referee Mike Dean refused to take action to fan the ongoing debate that the smaller clubs don’t get the big decisions.
So a potential 2-2 with all its repercussions ended up 4-1 for Chelsea and those at home wondering what all the fuss had been about.
But in truth it was only when Frank Lampard edged ever closer to Bobby Tambling’s all-time Chelsea scoring record three minutes from time that Benitez could relax and the home supporters found their voices.
Substitute Marko Marin’s follow-up from Cesar Azpilicueta’s saved effort in added time was flattering in the extreme. Ironically the anti-Benitez chants had just started to crank up when Chelsea themselves turned up the pressure to snatch the lead in the 23rd minute.
It was a move and finish to surely satisfy even the cravings of owner Abramovich, whose demands for cultured attacking football allied to Premier League points had already seen off Roberto Di Matteo and put Benitez under threat.
David Luiz, again pushed into midfield to utilise his passing skills rather than expose his defending deficiencies, found Fernando Torres who responded with a sublime ball into the on-running Ramires’ path.
Without hesitating the Brazilian placed the seal on as good a counter break goal as you could wish to see by sweeping his sixth goal of the season over the advancing Ali Al Habsi.
Cue relief all around Stamford Bridge – especially in the home dug-out. But what was this? Within a couple of minutes Benitez, normally content to rely on his suit for warmth in all weathers, suddenly reached for his coat.
Was he about to leave? No such luck for those Chelsea fans who have never given the former Liverpool manager a chance since taking over from Di Matteo.
The extra nervous energy expended on the sidelines was enough for him to ditch the coat at half-time.
Chelsea doubled their lead when Eden Hazard, on his return from a three-game ban, neatly side-footed past Al Habsi from an Azpilicueta pass. The Chelsea wobbles, however, quickly returned when Shaun Maloney pulled one back for Wigan after he was sent clear by James McArthur.
In times of trouble send for Super Frank. Fresh from his England goal in midweek Lampard crept within four goals of Tambling’s 202, calmly stroking home from a Hazard cut-back. With Marin’s strike it was game over – and no need for an emergency summit in the Abramovich household. Benitez insisted: “My job is to win games. You know it will be difficult to do this sometimes but I am confident we will finish in the top four.”
Wigan boss Roberto Martinez, who looks like having to repeat last season’s record of seven wins from their last nine games to avoid the drop, admitted: “We were trying to get a positive result and left ourselves exposed.”

===============