Independent:
Chelsea 1 Sunderland 2
Fabio Borini makes Chelsea pay penalty for lack of fight
Sunderland give themselves chance of survival and put title further out of Mourinho’s reach
Miguel Delaney
After a game full of errors, Chelsea suffer the biggest slip possible. Jose Mourinho has finally lost his 77-Premier League game unbeaten home record at Stamford Bridge, but the consequences go far deeper than that. Sunderland’s 2-1 win means Chelsea have fully lost initiative in the title race too. It is looking a long shot.
After their draw at Manchester City in midweek, meanwhile, Sunderland could also go a long way to helping Liverpool lift the title while saving themselves.
In the midst of all that, Mourinho had to save the referee Mike Dean from the ire of coach Rui Faria, physically restraining the coach from confronting the official. Dean was guilty of many errors but, beyond Chelsea’s complaints that culminated in Fabio Borini’s winning penalty, Ramires should have been sent off for a swipe. Chelsea as a whole never found the same sense of fight.
Cech may have been the player out with a virus but, even beyond his absence, these didn’t look like two teams in full health. The first half was error-strewn from the off, and finished with Dean missing Ramires’ strike on Seb Larsson.
Chelsea’s opening goal was a case in point. After a laboured opening 10 minutes, Samuel Eto’o injected life with a burst into the area. Sunderland were caught by surprise as John O’Shea completely bought the forward’s feint, before Santiago Vergini challenged for a corner.
If that was lax from Sunderland, the marking for the set-piece was ludicrously poor. Willian’s delivery was allowed simply to drop into the six-yard box, and Eto’o plundered a volley at mid-height.
It was the sort of effort that should have been easily headed away, and illustrated exactly why Sunderland are in such trouble.
Gus Poyet’s side did at least show why they retain some hope, though, by immediately mustering the spirit displayed in Wednesday’s 2-2 draw at Manchester City. They were similarly helped by some complacent play from title-challenging opposition.
Within six minutes of Eto’o’s opener, Sunderland won a corner. Somehow, Marcos Alonso was left free at the edge of the box, and he let rip with a drilled effort. It exposed Mark Schwarzer in more ways than one. The stand-in goalkeeper parried the effort right in front of him, allowing Conor Wickham to slot in the equaliser.
The Sunderland forward did look offside, however, ensuring the officials completed an error to go alongside the two teams. It was that kind of game. From there, the feeling began to grow that it would be one of those days for Chelsea.
All of a sudden, they were not quite linking up in the same way, despite the evident gaps in the Sunderland defence.
The first half was summed up on 36 minutes as Chelsea found even more space from a corner yet saw Branislavic Ivanovic head it down into the ground and keeper Vito Mannone fortunately palmed it on to the crossbar.
It was becoming that ragged. Mannone palmed away another Chelsea effort; Mike Dean waved away two claims for penalties – first after a perceived handball, second after Ramires seemed to be bundled over by Larsson just as he looked set to score.
The consolation for Chelsea was that Sunderland were being opened up, and also that they were very fortunate that Dean did not see Ramires taking retribution on Larsson.
Chelsea looked to hit Sunderland back in a different way just after half-time, but this time missed themselves. From the away side’s corner, Ivanovic released Willian, who initially surged up the pitch with intent. Just at the crucial moment, though, the attacker seemed to slow down. His pass was a little late, Eto’o’s aim was a little more obscured, and the eventual low shot was a little too far to the right of Mannone’s goal.
Chelsea’s frustration at that point was displayed by Oscar’s wild shot over the bar. Mourinho showed his dissatisfaction by hauling the Brazilian off for Demba Ba. The home side went to two up front, and their manager again played his one big wild card.
It did not initially have the same effect as against Swansea City, as Ba didn’t seem at the same level of sharpness. In one attack, the ball hit the back of his heel just when he seemed set to be released forward. In another, Ba first did well to flick the ball through for Willian, only to mess up his feet for the return.
With 25 minutes to go, there was still a lack of proper energy about Chelsea. They were too far back, not getting enough men forward, and always attacking only in spurts.
So, Mourinho went all out. Fernando Torres was introduced for Eto’o, but even more drama was injected into the game. Jozy Altidore went down in the box on 81 minutes and, although Cesar Azpilicueta didn’t appear to make contact, Dean pointed to the spot. Borini rolled it past Schwarzer and Faria roared up to the referee.
There was no grand siege however, no real late chance. The home side may have lost their chance.
Mourinho’s unbeaten home record is ended. Chelsea’s title challenge is on the brink.
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Schwarzer; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic; Salah (Schürrle, 66), Oscar (Ba, 59), Willian; Eto’o (Torres, 74)
Sunderland (4-3-3): Mannone; Vergini, O’Shea, Brown, Alonso; Larsson (Celustka, 90), Cattermole, Colback; Johnson (Giaccherini, 66), Wickham (Altidore, 66), Borini
Referee: Mike Dean.
Match rating: 7/10
Man of the match: Lee Cattermole (Sunderland)
==================
Observer:
Chelsea 1 Sunderland 2
Sunderland's Fabio Borini deals huge blow to Chelsea title bid
Dominic Fifield at Stamford Bridge
Fabio Borini may never eclipse this contribution as a Liverpool player. The Italian loanee edged up to the penalty, awarded harshly against César Azpilicueta eight minutes from time and with those on the home bench still seething, to throw Mark Schwarzer off balance before easing the ball into the net. With that one conversion, while breathing life into Sunderland's desperate attempt to avoid relegation, the Italian simultaneously handed his parent club the initiative in the title race. The Premier League title is Merseyside's to claim.
This was a twist few had foreseen in a campaign that has already defied logic. José Mourinho's 77-game unbeaten league sequence in this arena had been curtailed by the division's bottom club, a team without a win in the elite since early February, with the decisive goal converted by a former Chelsea player. Borini is the youth-team graduate who, having meandered nomadically from Roma to Swansea to Liverpool in the years since departing Cobham, had found opportunities so limited under Brendan Rodgers that he was shipped out for the season in search of first-team football. Chelsea have used the loan market to inflict plenty of damage on other contenders, most notably via Romelu Lukaku. This was them being subjected to a dose of their own medicine.
The award of the penalty was too much for the hosts to take. Mike Dean had, at best, offered an erratic refereeing display, having opted against penalising Adam Johnson for planting his studs in Azpilicueta's chest in the first half, or to grant the hosts a spot-kick when Ramires leapt to convert from close-range only to be edged away by Seb Larsson. The official had also turned a blind eye to the Brazilian's apparent retribution, an arm flung back at Larsson, but this was an afternoon of choked penalty appeals – there were heated cries for handball against Marcos Alonso – until an assistant referee raised his flag nine minutes from the end. By then, after the drip feed of perceived injustices, Dean's authority felt undermined.
Azpilicueta's foul on Jozy Altidore was not clearcut, the linesman's consideration perhaps swayed by the fact the full-back had never managed to recover his poise having initially slipped on the touchline to liberate the forward. He slipped again as he closed down on the American with contact unclear, though the decision did prompt flashbacks to Ramires's stumble under pressure from Steven Reid that had earned a stoppage time reprieve in the home draw with West Bromwich Albion back in November.
Chelsea were apoplectic, their title challenge wrecked by Borini's calm finish. Rui Faria's livid reaction on the touchline once the penalty had been converted reflected exasperation, though the fact it took three of the coaching staff to restrain him and usher him down the tunnel made it feel utterly shameful. Mourinho even tugged his compatriot back by the hair to prevent him escaping Phil Dowd, the fourth official, and confronting Dean face to face. The referee merely sent the assistant to the stand. His sanction will be hefty.
The possibility of Ramires's season also now being over for the glance back and swing at Larsson will depend upon whether Dean witnessed the incident clearly. He had seemed well positioned but waved away Larsson's protests. If sanctioned retrospectively, the Brazilian will receive a four-game ban for his second red card offence of term, both within a little over a month. He had felt a pivotal player for the trip to Anfield next weekend though, in reality, if Liverpool prevail at Carrow Road on Sunday then the gap to second place will be five points and Rodgers' team will retain the initiative even if they are beaten by Mourinho. More pertinent will be the ramifications of this result for victors and vanquished in the weeks ahead.
Chelsea must summon a response at Atlético Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday, trying to blot out the memory of the lead that was surrendered so wastefully here. Samuel Eto'o had eased too simply away from Lee Cattermole to convert Willian's corner and, even if Connor Wickham's conversion from close range after Mark Schwarzer's poor handling restored parity, there had been other opportunities to forge ahead. Yet Vito Mannone turned Branislav Ivanovic's header on to the crossbar, then denied Nemanja Matic and Mohamed Salah. After the interval, chances were flashed wide until André Schürrle drew a fine save from the Italian.
The profligacy was just as costly as the flashes of defensive vulnerability with Wickham's goal the first reward for a visiting team in this arena for 840 minutes, stretching back to Manchester United's visit in January. The virus that had sidelined Petr Cech will not prevent him featuring in Madrid, and that constitutes cause for relief given the Australian veteran, Chelsea's oldest Premier League player at 41 years 195 days, was understandably rusty throughout. Too much of the home side's display seemed uncharacteristic.
Sunderland might concede this was freakish as well. Their last league win had been at St James' Park on 1 February, a distant if glorious memory, and it had been on home games against Cardiff City, West Brom and Swansea City that they had pinned their faint hopes of survival. Now, having climbed to within three points of Norwich, hope is renewed even if there will be expectation when the Welsh club visit the Stadium of Light next weekend. "Probably we accept we are the smaller team in matches like this," said Gus Poyet, whose team had come so close to winning at Manchester City last Wednesday. "We play Cardiff next week. How are we going to convince everyone in England we're the smallest team in England? No chance.
"Maybe we're the better team. Are we? It's a mental thing. The strongest team mentally will go and win the game. This whole relegation battle is incredible, heart-breaking, difficult, but we're going to keep fighting. We look a completely different team to last Wednesday afternoon, but I just want to keep this level of performance from now on in." They will need just that if they are to achieve their season's objective. Chelsea will need the pressure to choke Liverpool at the last if they are to revive their own aspirations to regain the title. The advantage lies with Liverpool.
==========================
Telegraph:
Chelsea 1 Sunderland 2
By Jim White, at Stamford Bridge
Seventy-seven games on the bounce the manager had supervised at Stamford Bridge without tasting defeat. And then Mike Dean arrived to referee Chelsea's game with Sunderland. With one whistled intervention, Jose Mourinho's season unravelled. Or so he would have us believe.
In the 82nd minute of this tense, scrappy match, César Azpilicueta, perhaps trying to recover after slipping to cede possession, slid in on the Sunderland substitute Jose Altidore. There seemed minimal contact, certainly little intent, but the referee was unflinching and pointed to the penalty spot.
And when Fabio Borini, a Liverpool player on loan at the Stadium of Light, rolled the ball easily under Mark Schwarzer to record the most unexpected of victories for the struggling visitors, everything unravelled at the Bridge: the title challenge, the season and the discipline of the home players, as Ramires appeared to take a swing at Seb Larsson.
Not to mention the dignity of the home coaching staff.
The decision so enraged Rui Faria, Chelsea's fitness coach, he ran on to the pitch in the attempt to accost Dean. Mourinho, acting swiftly as peacemaker, hauled him away, before giving Dean his own unequivocal view of the incident.
As his masterclass in deadpan sarcasm at the final whistle insisted, it did not appear he concurred with the referee's decision.
Thus it was that, after his Sunderland team contrived a midweek draw against Manchester City followed by this most improbable victory at Stamford Bridge, two results which effectively handed Brendan Rodgers the title, Gus Poyet became every Liverpool fan's second favourite manager.
"Overall it's special, very special," said Poyet of the victory that has utterly transformed his club's survival hopes at the same time as suddenly increasingly champagne sales on Merseyside. "But I assure you we play only for Sunderland today."
What will have frustrated Mourinho most was that this game was meant to be a formality. Tuesday sees the start of a three-game sequence – in which the showdown with Liverpool is bookended by Champions League semi-final legs against Atletico Madrid – that was supposed to define Chelsea's season.
But the manager was right in his programme notes to suggest that only three points accrued against the relegation favourites would keep the title quest alive. Victory here was the only option.
And in the eleventh minute, it looked as if such a result might be achieved in the most routine of fashions. A jinking run by Samuel Eto'o was brought to an end by Santiago Vergini's sliding tackle just as the Ivorian was about to shoot.
From Willian's corner, Eto'o completed the job by stabbing the ball past Vito Mannone with his left foot. By way of celebration, the striker ran to the technical area and did a mime of a pensioner dancing. Mourinho, sitting on the bench, smiled indulgently.
His smile did not last. If Chelsea supporters thought this would spark the start of a rout, they were quickly disabused. Like they had done at Manchester City on Wednesday, Sunderland struck back.
Ten minutes after that opener, Johnson sprayed a brilliant pass forty yards to the overlapping Marco Alonso, whose attempted cross was battered behind by Branislav Ivanovic. Seb Larsson took the corner, cutting the ball back to Alonso, who had ambled in unnoticed to the edge of the area.
The Spaniard shot firmly, but not particularly viciously towards the Chelsea goal. At that moment Schwarzer, playing in goal because Petr Cech had succumbed to a pre-match illness, looked what he is: the oldest man to play for the first team in the club's history.
Going down in instalments, he failed properly to deal with the skimmed shot, scooping the ball up to Connor Wickham who slotted the equaliser, his third goal against title contenders in as many days.
Sunderland, given an English heart by Gus Poyet after the disastrous buy-anyone-with-a-pulse regime of Paolo di Canio, were by now playing with spirit and tenacity. It may not have been technically elevated – there were nine men strung across the front of their penalty area from the first minute – but they indicated they are not going to go quietly.
Wickham in particular looked a player equipped for the Premier League. Giving hint of what might have been had injury not prevailed, his touch was consistently fine. Or at least it was until he clutched at his knee after 25 minutes; he was subsequently replaced by Altidore.
What would have disappointed Mourinho was that Chelsea could not break down such stubbornness. True, they began the second half as if determined quickly to put a stop to Sunderland's impertinence.
Ramires had a shot cannoned off the back of a Sunderland defender for a corner, Oscar shot tamely after a quick-fire passing move had opened up a counter attack, then his backheeled effort was booted clear by Alonso. But their effort was not sufficient.
On the hour, just after Lee Cattermole got his inevitable yellow card, hauling down Oscar as if the game were being played down the road at the Stoop, Mourinho made his first move. Perhaps appreciating that subtlety was not going to work, he sent on Demba Ba to replace the Brazilian.
Ba's first contribution was not elevated, slicing a cut back from the tireless Willian horribly wide. It was a strike which had Mourinho throwing his arms up in frustration, as if convinced fate had determined this was not to be his day.
By now the crowd was growing ever more impatient at Chelsea's bleak inability to bypass Sunderland's increasingly forthright tackling (Wes Brown upended both Ba and Gary Cahill in quick succession in a manner which can only be described as old school).
Groans accompanied every missed chance. Every misdirected pass was greeted by howls of dismay. When the substitute Fernando Torres marked his arrival with an overhead kick which zipped spectacularly into row 15 of the Matthew Harding Stand, a thick fug of misery descended.
A fug which became permanent with Dean's contribution, which effectively signalled the end of Chelsea's charge.
"If we don't stay up now it will be a shame," said a victorious Poyet of his three days' miracle work. "Wednesday at five o'clock we were dead. These games have given us a great chance to stay up."
For Mourinho all that was left was sarcasm. By then the damage to Chelsea's league challenge had been done.
Match details
Chelsea: Schwarzer 5; Ivanovic 5, Terry 6, Cahill 6, Azpilicueta 6; Matic 5, Ramires 6; Salah 6 (Schurrle 66), Oscar 5 (D Ba, 59), Willian 7; Eto'o 6 (Torres 74). Subs not used: Hilario, Luiz, Lampard, Mikel.
Sunderland: Mannone 6; Vergini 5, Brown 6, O'Shea 6, Alonso 6; Larsson 6 (Celustka 90), Cattermole 5, Colback 6, Johnson 5 (Giaccherini 65); Wickham 7 (Altidore 66), Borini 5. Subs not used: Ustari, , E-H Ba, Scocco, Mavrias.
Referee: Mike Dean
===============
Times:
Chelsea 1 Sunderland 2: Borini tears apart Blues
Jonathan Northcroft
Chelsea 1 - 2 Sunderland
HE GRABBED him by the hair and pulled him off Mike Dean, pushing him down the tunnel and averting further scenes. Rui Faria was yapping like a foaming spaniel, out of control and almost squaring up to the referee when his master intervened.
Thank goodness Jose Mourinho still had a grip of Faria, his assistant coach. But he no longer has any hold on the title race. Press conference theatrics in the aftermath were just sideshow stuff — Liverpool are centre stage now.
The leaders can almost touch glory, a first title in 24 seasons, after this, the most unexpected of home defeats. In 77 matches Mourinho had never lost in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge and Sunderland arrived, its bottom team. They left with hope and a place in history.
They look likely to prove the strangest of kingmakers. In midweek Sunderland drew at Manchester City, to further aid Liverpool, and yet Poyet’s side have the worst record against teams in the bottom half of the table. In another twist their winning goal was scored, from the penalty spot, nervelessly, by Fabio Borini — a Liverpool player merely at Sunderland on loan.
The spot-kick award was what made Faria froth at Dean. Cesar Azpilicueta slipped and lost possession. Jozy Altidore raced into the box. Azpilicueta tried to tackle the substitute, who began slipping as he changed direction. Altidore had already lost his footing and seemed to be going down anyway when Azpilicueta made slight contact with his trailing leg.
It was a soft award, one Poyet admitted would have enraged him had it gone the other way, but Faria’s tantrum was pathetic and Dean sent him down the tunnel. Mourinho’s sarcastic praise of the officials was not much better. Chelsea’s fury was compounded when Dean ignored a plausible claim, soon after Borini’s 82nd-minute penalty, when Lee Cattermole, diving to block but throwing his arms up, handled a Fernando Torres shot.
Sunderland could argue they were also wronged — when Dean failed to spot an off-the-ball elbow by Ramires on Sebastian Larsson that should have drawn a red card.
Torres was a late Mourinho substitute and went close with a header and an overhead kick while Andre Schurrle forced Vito Mannone to tip over a powerful shot. John Terry stayed up front in the final stages yet headed straight at Mannone and nothing Chelsea threw at Sunderland worked.
They had pressure throughout but neither sufficient accuracy with the finishing nor invention around the box. They sorely missed Eden Hazard, who is touch-and-go to return from a calf injury for Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final first leg at Atletico Madrid. Without Hazard, Chelsea had players doing the percentages but none the unexpected. Dare it be said Juan Mata, sold to Manchester United, might have been handy.
Chelsea went ahead through a Samuel Eto’o close-in finish from Willian’s 12th-minute corner but a set-piece brought Sunderland level. At their corner, with Chelsea braced for a standard delivery, Larsson floated the ball to Marcos Alonso, alone on the edge of the box. He chested and struck a dipping volley that Mark Schwarzer saw late. He reacted slowly and parried straight to Connor Wickham, who poked in. Schwarzer, 41 and the oldest player in the Premier League, was a late inclusion because Petr Cech felt unwell.
Sunderland, with five in midfield and wide players discouraging Chelsea’s full-backs from attacking, were hard to penetrate and only Willian had enough spark to threaten. So many shots went straight at Mannone. Oscar — whose slump in form is alarming — hit a free kick and a curling shot from 18 yards with technique but no boldness of placement.
Chelsea had a concerted assault just before half-time but Mohamed Salah struck straight at Mannone and, when the ball spun off Mannone after Willian’s flick from Salah’s cross, Ramires headed wide of the unguarded goal.
Mannone pushed an Ivanovic header against the bar. Chelsea pleaded for a penalty when Borini headed against Alonso’s arm but the handball seemed involuntary.
Early in the second half, released by Willian, Eto’o placed a shot wide. When Demba Ba lost his footing in trying to convert a chance Mourinho didn’t hide his disgust — but that was just the start of the theatrics.
Star man: Lee Cattermole (Sunderland)
Chelsea: Schwarzer 5, Ivanovic 6, Cahill 6, Terry 6, Azpilicueta 5, Ramires 5, Matic 6, Salah 5 (Schurrle 66min), Oscar 4 (Ba 59min, 6), Willian 7, Eto’o 7 (Torres 74min)
Sunderland: Mannone 7, Vergini 6, O’Shea 7, Brown 6, Alonso 6, Cattermole 7, Johnson 6 (Giaccherini 66min), Larsson 6 (Celustka 90min), Colback 7, Borini 6, Wickham 7 (Altidore 66min)
Mourinho's record goes
■Jose Mourinho lost one of his proudest records as manager of Chelsea last night. Sunderland’s victory was the first time he had lost a home league game in two spells at the club. Mourinho had been undefeated in 77 league games, winning 61 of them, before Sunderland shocked his side at Stamford Bridge.
■Chelsea’s first league game under Mourinho was their 1-0 home victory against Manchester United on August 15, 2004. Eidur Gudjohnsen hit the winner.
Congratulations all round: Mourinho's two-minute press conference
‘Just to say I will not wait for your questions. I’m so sorry about it. But in three or four points I can say everything I can say so I won't waste time with the questions you will ask me. We stick with four quick points because I will just say this whatever you asked.
‘The first is to congratulate my players. They did everything they could, playing from the first minute to the last seconds, and deserved that. Sometimes we praise the players when we win. I think it's fair to praise my players after the defeat.
‘Secondly, congratulations to Sunderland. It doesn't matter how, why or in which way they won, they won. They won three fantastic points. I think it's also fair to congratulate them.
‘Third point, I want to congratulate again Mike Dean. I think his performance was unbelievable and I think when referees have unbelievable performances, I think it's fair that as managers we give them praise. So, fantastic performance. He came here with one objective. To make a fantastic performance. And he did that.
‘And fourth, congratulations also to Mike Riley, the referees' boss. What they are doing through the whole season is fantastic, especially in the last couple of months, and in teams involved in the title race. Absolutely fantastic. I also congratulate Mr Riley.’
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Mail:
Chelsea 1-2 Sunderland: Advantage Liverpool as Blues suffer crucial defeat at the hands of relegation battling Black Cats
By Patrick Collins
Amid shameful scenes of chaotic violence, Chelsea surrendered their realistic chance of the title, their 77-match unbeaten home League record under Jose Mourinho, and a painful slice of their self-respect.
They stumbled away from Stamford Bridge, aware that the consequences could be both costly and brutal.
The ugliest incidents erupted in the last few moments of the game, shortly after referee Mike Dean had awarded Sunderland a mildly controversial but ultimately match-winning penalty.
Rui Faria, Chelsea’s assistant coach, repeatedly tried to attack the referee, as Mourinho clutched first his arm and then a handful of his dark hair in his frantic attempts to restrain his fellow Portuguese.
At one stage, it needed three Chelsea assistants, as well as Mourinho, to haul back the mindlessly furious Faria.
One imagines that the FA fines and ban will be of almost unprecedented proportions.
Typically, Mourinho offered an unrepentant face after the game. He declined questions and opted for sarcasm, one of the few dark arts for which he has no talent.
He pretended to congratulate Dean: ‘I think his performance was unbelievable, and I think when referees have unbelievable performances, I think it’s fair that as managers we give them praise. He came here with one objective, to make a fantastic performance. And he did that.’
There was more in the same vein directed at the referees’ chief Mike Riley. It was turgid stuff, a genuinely prattish performance which fell far below the gravity of the event.
Mourinho has never been a good loser, and in fairness he has had little practice. But such a dramatically expensive defeat by the Premier League’s bottom club — and that by a penalty converted by Fabio Borini, a Liverpool player on loan to Sunderland — was too much for the man to take.
The notion that the Chelsea manager has somehow become more mature, more gracious, this season did not survive this remarkable evening.
To add to his problems, he is acutely aware that Ramires, his influential midfielder, will undoubtedly face an FA charge after a crudely cynical off-the-ball assault on Sunderland’s Seb Larsson. It occurred in the 44th minute, and was missed by all the officials. With Larsson tracking back after Ramires, the Chelsea midfielder paused, looked round, then smashed his forearm into Larsson’s face. Dean’s failure to spot the offence was probably his one clear-cut mistake of the match.
And an astonishing match it proved to be. In the 12th minute, Willian’s corner came whipping in from the left, hip-high, Samuel Eto’o reached out, snaked his leg around a nervous defender and produced a scoring shot of startling power. Sunderland had been searching for confidence to that point, but we now saw it draining away.
Their approach was apprehensive, with Connor Wickham asked to do an unreasonable task, marooned at the front and required to scamper hopefully after lost causes.
But the 17th minute brought quite unexpected equality. Larsson’s left-wing corner was pulled way back to Marcos Alonso, in acres of untended space.
He struck an optimistic drive from some 25 yards, which bounced in front of Mark Schwarzer and rebounded into the path of the willing Wickham, whose scoring chip was delicately accurate. Schwarzer was starting as the result of Petr Cech’s minor ailment.
Sunderland’s confidence came surging back. Although Chelsea were allowed to dictate their own midfield terms, they were also required to play most of their football in front of the covering screen of red-and-white stripes. They were short of the wit, the concealed pass, the cutting run which finds the odd hole in the defensive blanket. Indeed, their best chance of the period came from a set-piece, Willian’s corner being met by a thumping drive from Ivanovic which Vito Mannone lifted on to his bar and then caught.
There was a Chelsea penalty demand when a header struck the arm of Alonso. Referee Dean turned that one down, and seemed correct to do so.
But Chelsea’s nerves should have settled within three minutes of the second half, when, following a Sunderland corner, Willian set off on a 50-yard sprint from deep and played in Eto’o, whose shot was swift and wayward.
Inevitably, the strain was beginning to show in Sunderland’s game. On 56 minutes, Lee Cattermole needlessly lost possession at half-way, leaving Oscar a run on goal.
Predictably, Cattermole yanked him back, accepting the yellow card as a price worth paying. It was Oscar’s final contribution, for just before the hour he was replaced by Demba Ba, whose first contribution of note was a grotesquely awful miss from a handful of yards.
But as the 66th minute arrived and the managers made their compound substitutions the match was entering its defining period.
Much would depend on how the excellent central defensive partnership of John O’Shea and Wes Brown would handle the new threat of Fernando Torres, who replaced Eto’o.
Then, in the 83rd minute, the whole thing exploded. Jozy Altidore scampered down the right, Cesar Azpilicueta offered a lumbering challenge which seemed to take away the Sunderland forward’s standing leg.
Dean’s decision was instant, and on balance, correct. Borini rolled in the kick nervelessly.
Then, as the play moved close to the Chelsea dugout, the ridiculous Faria threw the mother of all tantrums.
The affray rolled from touchline to technical area, and with every second the name of the club and their coach were dragged through the dust.
The scene was as ugly as the English game has seen for a long time: a referee coming under direct physical threat. The spectacle was repugnant. The punishment will go off the scale.
Chelsea: Schwarzer 5, Ivanovic 6.5, Cahill 6.5, Terry 6.5, Azpilicueta 6, Ramires 4.5, Matic 6.5, Salah 6.5 (Schurrle 66, 6), Oscar 5.5 (Ba 59, 6), Willian 6.5, Eto'o 6.5 (Torres 74, 5).
Subs not used: Luiz, Lampard, Mikel, Hilario.
Booked: Torres
Goal: Eto'o 12.
Sunderland: Mannone 8.5, Vergini 5, O'Shea 7.5, Brown 7.5, Alonso 7, Cattermole 7, Johnson 6 (Giaccherini 66, 6), Larsson 6.5 (Celustka 90), Colback 6.5, Borini 6, Wickham 6.5 (Altidore 66, 6.5).
Subs not used: Ba, Scocco, Ustari, Mavrias.
Booked: Cattermole, Brown.
Goal: Wickham 18, Borini (pen) 82.
Man of the Match: Vito Mannone
Ref: Mike Dean
Att: 41,210
*Player ratings by Sami Mokbel at Stamford Bridge
===================
Mirror:
Chelsea 1-2 Sunderland: Blues miss the chance to go top of the Premier League table with shock defeat
By Dave Kidd
Mourinho's 77-game unbeaten home record as Chelsea boss is smashed by the Black Cats, who boost their slender survival hopes
When the end finally arrived, it came amid acrimony and bedlam and from the unlikeliest of sources.
Jose Mourinho’s astonishing 77-match unbeaten home League run as Chelsea manager was brought to a juddering halt by a brave penalty call from Mike Dean, which brought a scarcely credible victory for rock-bottom Sunderland.
It then saw Mourinho having to forcibly restrain his lieutenant Rui Faria from confronting referee Dean – the Portuguese coach behaving like a man possessed.
Fabio Borini – on loan from Liverpool – had coolly netted the winning spot kick, which could seal the title for his parent club.
And Dean was met with chants of “Who’s the Scouser in the black?”.
Dean, from the Wirral. Borini, on loan from Liverpool. You could see the cogs in Mourinho’s mind working on conspiracy theories and excuses.
It mattered not.
Chelsea’s title hopes are no longer in their own hands.
They could win at Anfield next week and still not be champions. They will be four points behind Liverpool, should Brendan Rodgers’ men defeat Norwich tomorrow.
They will head to Atletico Madrid for Tuesday’s semi-final first leg, knowing the Champions League is now their most realistic chance of silverware.
Chelsea sorely missed keeper Petr Cech – out through sickness – with deputy Mark Schwarzer spilling one to allow Connor Wickham a first-half equaliser, which cancelled out the Samuel Eto’o opener. They also missed the creativity of the injured Eden Hazard.
But Sunderland thoroughly deserved this victory.
They are back from the dead in the relegation battle after a remarkable week, which saw them come so close to winning at Manchester City, thanks to a Wickham double.
How Wickham will be worshipped on the red half of Merseyside – and Borini, the Italian who had flopped at Anfield last season, too.
Wickham has come from nowhere to be the single most influential figure in this compelling title race.
Yet, the crazy evening, which brought Mourinho’s downfall, had begun in orderly fashion.
Eto’o had won the corner, from which he scored, with a saucy piece of skill to skin John O’Shea before he was tackled. When Willian sent in the dead ball, Eto’o sneaked in front of Lee Cattermole to volley home from the edge of the six-yard box. The Cameroonian celebrated with a slow-motion dance in front of the Chelsea bench, which even raised a smile from the sulking Mourinho.
But the lead lasted just five minutes – thanks to the first meaningful goal Chelsea have conceded at home this year and the first of any kind in nine matches and more than 14 hours of football.
Seb Larsson’s corner went deep to Marcos Alonso, whose low drive was spilled by Aussie Mark Schwarzer, allowing Wickham to poke home.
It was the 41-year-old keeper’s first league appearance for Chelsea and proof that bench rust can cause butterfingers.
There was a hint of offside, but Wickham, once hailed as English football’s next big thing as a teenager at Ipswich, has ignited this week, with three goals away from home against title contenders. Suddenly, the match was wide-open, with Chelsea stretched in a way which would have horrified their brooding boss.
But Sunderland keeper Vito Mannone was the real centre of attention. First, the Italian helped Branislav Ivanovic’s downward header on to the bar.
Then came an outstanding double-save from Nemanja Matic’s long-range effort and Mo Salah’s follow-up.
There were screams for a penalty when Marcos Alonso handled, but a spot kick would have been unduly harsh.
And then it was the bad and the ugly from Ramires.
First, he missed an open-goal headed chance after a forceful challenge from Larsson.
Chelsea’s Brazilian midfielder then seemed to attempt revenge by handing the Sunderland midfielder an arm in the face off the ball – a flashpoint that could earn him a retrospective ban.
Eto’o fired wide when Willian sent him clean through early in the second half, but there was an uncharacteristic lack of control about Chelsea.
Poyet’s men had rattled Chelsea to such an extent that even John Terry – long-serving enough to have been a former Blues team-mate of the Sunderland boss – was committing basic errors.
Mourinho sacrificed Oscar for Demba Ba, going with two up front midway in the second half.
But Ba soon fell and squandered a fine chance, before Fernando Torres became the last throw of the dice and went close with a bicycle kick.
But when Cesar Azpilicueta slipped to let in Jozy Altidore and clipped the American as he attempted to recover, Dean pointed to the spot and Borini did the rest – a spot kick down the middle.
Then came the filth and the fury from Faria.
This is the way Mourinho’s teams tend to implode. In acrimony. In disgrace.
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Express:
Chelsea 1 - Sunderland 2: Black Cats hand the title to Kop
JOSE MOURINHO’S recent vow of silence appears to have spread to his team, Chelsea’s Premier League title challenge almost ending with a whimper along with his proud unbeaten home record.
By: John Richardson
In amazing scenes which will have dramatic repercussions, Chelsea’s assistant first-team coach Rui Faria had to be bundled away by Mourinho and backroom staff in the aftermath of Sunderland’s winning goal.
He appeared to be intent on attacking referee Mike Dean, who had awarded Sunderland an 81st-minute penalty.
Former Chelsea youngster Fabio Borini scored to end Mourinho’s 77-match unbeaten Premier League record at Stamford Bridge.
And Liverpool appear to be on course to be the biggest beneficiaries come the middle of next month.
It had been a fine balancing act for Mourinho, with Tuesday night’s Champions League semi-final with Atletico Madrid in mind. What he couldn’t forseen was the absence through illness of keeper Petr Cech, with 41-year-old Mark Schwarzer flung in for his first league game since joining on a free transfer from Fulham in the summer.
It proved costly, the Aussie culpable for Sunderland’s equaliser which helped place a huge dent in Chelsea’s title ambitions.
For Sunderland it was another brave and defiant performance following on from the creditable draw at Manchester City on Wednesday night.
And it gives them hope that a miracle escape can still be enacted. Meanwhile, Chelsea’s ‘Silent One’ – Mourinho who had left media duties to coach Steve Holland – will surely now see the Champions League as the best route to silverware.
The welcome for ex-Chelsea star Gus Poyet had been warm and cordial, applause from around the dugout area and a bear hug for the Sunderland boss from Mourinho.
Chelsea had been more concerned about taking a stranglehold on the game as they looked to regain top spot, even if it might be for just 24 hours.
Quickly stroking the ball around with poise and precision, they exploded into a 12th-minute lead through Samuel Eto’o. It was a goal which would have horrified Poyet, a routine corner dismantling Sunderland’s defence with the minimum of fuss.
Willian slung it over and when the central defenders went missing, Eto’o avoided Lee Cattermole’s desperate challenge to spear a leftfooted volley past Vito Mannone.
But Sunderland, as they displayed in midweek against Manchester City, have suddenly woken up to the realisation that their Premier League life could be ebbing away.
They took just six minutes to respond following a corner of their own. Seb Larsson cleverly clipped it back to Marcos Alonso, lurking just outside the area. His low strike should have been smothered by Schwarzer but he fumbled, allowing Connor Wickham to prosper.
It was the England Under-21 player’s third goal in two games following his double against City – the £8million invested in the one-time Ipswich player at last beginning to be paid off. Amazingly for Chelsea, it was the first goal they had conceded in 10 games at the Bridge in all competitions.
It also gave Mourinho food for thought in the knowledge that Sunderland were not prepared to go quietly.
They were set up to cause damage in an adventurous 4-3- 3 system which allowed Adam Johnson to roam at will.
He cut in from the left to curl a shot wide before Chelsea launched more of their own assaults. Oscar twice tested Mannone and when Branislav Ivanovic headed down from another Willian corner, the keeper deflected the ball against the underside of the bar before grasping the rebound.
Ramires can count himself fortunate after a clear assault on Larsson. Clearly still aggravated when apparently bundled off the ball by the Swede in a promising position, he stuck out a forearm into Larsson’s face the next time the pair came together.
Larsson went down – with interest – but the incident went unpunished. Retrospective action could follow with a three-match ban, which would end the Brazilian’s domestic season.
Chelsea, lacking any real firepower – although Eto’o had gone close – sent on Demba Ba, buzzing after three goals in his previous four games. Fernando Torres was to follow in a late gamble to snatch something from a game. But it wasn’t to be.
MAN OF MATCH: VITO MANNONE – The villain in midweek turned into the hero at the Bridge.
CHELSEA: Schwarzer; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Ramires, Matic; Salah (Schurrle 65), Oscar (Ba 59), Willian; Eto’o (Torres 74).
SUNDERLAND: Mannone; Virgini, Brown, O’Shea, Alonso; Cattermole, Colback, Larsson; Johnson (Giaccherini 65), Wickham (Altidore 65), Borini (Celustka 90).
Ref: M Dean
Att: 41,210
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Star:
Chelsea 1 - Sunderland 2: Fabio Borini puts a major dent in the Blues title challenge
HOME rule ended for Jose Mourinho last night – and Chelsea’s title challenge could be over too.
By Paul Hetherington
After 77 league games without defeat at Stamford Bridge, the Chelsea boss suffered a stunning loss against bottom-of-the table Sunderland.
Liverpool loan man Fabio Borini slotted home a penalty after Cesar Azpilicueta was ruled to have brought down Sunderland substitute Jozy Altidore.
It was all too much for Mourinho’s assistant, Rui Faria, who went berserk on the touchline and appeared to try to get to referee Mike Dean.
Mourinho had to pull Faria back by the hair before the assistant was sent to the stand.
But for Sunderland, it was a result – following their draw at Manchester City – which keeps alive their hopes of avoiding relegation.
Chelsea went into the match without goalkeeper Petr Cech for the first time in a Premier League game this season. Cech was unwell but is expected to be fit for Tuesday night’s Champions League date at Atletico Madrid.
But it meant ex-Middlesbrough and Fulham keeper Mark Schwarzer made his league debut for Chelsea at the age of 41 Predictably, though, the keeper pressed into action first was Sunderland’s Vito Mannone, who held a low strike by Willian in the 11th minute.
And a minute later, Mannone had no chance of making a save as Samuel Eto’o gave Chelsea the lead.
Willian’s left-wing corner saw Eto’o react sharply to beat Lee Cattermole to the ball and fl ash home a left-foot volley.
Schwarzer, though, was in the spotlight when he did have to make a save – and when he failed to do cleanly, the Black Cats were level.
The first goal Chelsea had conceded in ten home matches arrived in the 18th minute.
Seb Larsson found Marcos Alonso when he played a corner from the left wing away from the goalmouth and the resultant shot was stopped but not held by the veteran keeper.
Connor Wickham then pounced on the loose ball and produced a neat finish with his right foot for his third goal in two games.
Sunderland’s next chance arrived in the last minute of the first half but Adam Johnson was robbed by Azpilicueta when in a good position.
But before that, Chelsea laid siege to the Black Cats’ goal.
John Terry had a goal disallowed after a blatant push by Nemanja Matic and Mannone turned a Branislav Ivanovic header on to the bar.
Mannone then made a double save from Matic and Mohamed Salah and Ramires, under challenge from Larsson, headed wide with the goal at his mercy.
Another clash involving Larsson and Ramires will almost certainly lead to the FA taking retrospective action against the Chelsea midfielder, who blatantly hit the Swede in the face with his arm in an off-the-ball incident.
As Chelsea strove to regain their lead, Eto’o shot across the face of the goal and substitute Ba miscued a chance wide.
