stoke city 7-0

The Times

Chelsea thrash Stoke to edge ahead in Premier League title race
Chelsea 7 Stoke City 0

Matt Hughes, Deputy Football Correspondent

It is the source of some embarrassment to Liverpool fans that the Premier League title has never been decided at Anfield, but effectively that tantalising prospect lies in wait when Chelsea visit on Sunday, albeit not in the manner of which the home fans will have dreamt. To make matters worse, they will be caught in a tangled web of conflicting emotions.
In normal circumstances Liverpool would like nothing better than to take the title from Chelsea, with whom they have developed an increasingly bitter rivalry because of their frequent Champions League meetings, but the situation is far from ordinary with two matches of the most competitive championship in years remaining.
A Liverpool win or draw on Sunday would hand the initiative to Manchester United, who would need victories from that afternoon’s match away to Sunderland and their final home game against Stoke City to claim a fourth successive title and move ahead of their rivals with 19 overall.
Most Liverpool fans would prefer to witness the public humiliation of seeing Chelsea effectively claim the title on their ground than the more enduring agony of United taking their place in the record books, but with Champions League qualification also at stake, the players are hardly in a position to throw in the towel. Given so many fascinating subplots, it should be quite a contest, a real Clash of the Titans, as opposed to the film Carlo Ancelotti had planned to watch on Saturday, a cinema trip that did not take place. Instead the Italian preferred to relax by taking “a walk in the park”, which proved to be somewhat prophetic.
As preparation for a potentially season-defining encounter this mismatch was like warming up for the London Marathon by strolling down to the shops, but Chelsea’s strut along Fulham Broadway was mightily impressive nevertheless, as their home form has been all season. This was the biggest top-flight win in the club’s 105-year history, yet such has been the ease with which Chelsea have scored at Stamford Bridge this season that the procession almost seemed prosaic.
Roman Abramovich has attempted to build an entertaining team since buying the club seven years ago, and Ancelotti has finally delivered without spending any money. The Russian owner has previously complained that previous Chelsea teams were bland and characterless, but Ancelotti has given them a fresh identity, as the manager explained afterwards.
“We have changed something,” he said. “If Chelsea play good football and people see that we do that, we are happy. That is our aim, to play good football and give joy to our fans. This is our philosophy. We have a lot of attacking players and we want to attack to use their quality. With this ability you will always score goals.”
That is of an understatement. In eight home league matches since the turn of the year Chelsea have scored 33 goals, a considerable improvement even on their remarkable record of 60 goals in 18 home games all season and 93 in 36 overall. Stoke’s supine surrender was so complete that even Daniel Sturridge got in on the act with two minutes remaining, although the plaudits resulting from the 20-year-old’s composed finish for his first Premier League goal for the club were immediately retracted after a ridiculous celebration.
Such a free-scoring approach would make Chelsea worthy champions, were it not for a modest record on their travels that makes the Liverpool game so intriguing. Ancelotti’s side have been beaten away from home by Wigan Athletic, Aston Villa, Manchester City, Everton and Tottenham Hotspur this season, which in an ordinary campaign would leave them well off the pace. These shortcomings will be forgiven if they follow victories at the Emirates Stadium and Old Trafford with a win at Anfield, which, as a shell-shocked Tony Pulis said, is shaping up as the championship decider.
It is odd to relate now, but Chelsea began the afternoon under considerable pressure, which soon dissipated. Thomas Sorensen denied Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole with a brilliant double save and tipped a header by Didier Drogba round the post as the home side seemed to shoot at will, but was powerless to stop Salomon Kalou opening the scoring with a diving header in the 24th minute.
Kalou got even closer to Sorensen as he doubled Chelsea’s lead with a sliding challenge eight minutes later, causing the Denmark goalkeeper to be carried off on a stretcher with a suspected dislocated elbow that could rule him out of this summer’s World Cup. Pulis was gracious enough to admit that the loss of his goalkeeper did not influence a result he likened to a murder, but the visiting team did implode when Asmir Begovic replaced him for his debut, which may provide at least some consolation to Portsmouth.
Kalou was denied a chance to score a first hat-trick when Lampard insisted on taking a penalty won by the Ivory Coast striker just before half-time, although he was soon presented with another opportunity. After Begovic saved his initial shot in the 69th minute, Kalou converted the rebound, thus quadrupling the number of league goals he has scored this season in the space of 45 minutes.
The last ten minutes was a humiliating experience for Pulis, with Lampard, Sturridge and Florent Malouda queueing up to score as Chelsea hit seven for the second time in a month. Lampard’s 25th goal was the pick, a wonderfully delicate right-foot volley, although he would trade all of them for three points next week.
Many Liverpool fans would be happy to see Chelsea take them, which must be another first as we approach the climax of an unforgettable season.

Chelsea (4-3-3): P Cech 6 — P Ferreira 6 (sub: S Hutchison, 73min), B Ivanovic 6, Alex 6, A Cole 6 — F Lampard 8, M Ballack 7, F Malouda 7 — S Kalou 8 (sub: J Cole, 71), D Drogba 8 , N Anelka 7 (sub: D Sturridge, 80). Substitutes not used: Hilário, Y Zhirkov, J Belletti, P van Aanholt. Next: Liverpool (a).

Stoke City (4-4-2): T Sorensen 6 (sub: A Begovic, 35 4) — R Huth 4, D Collins 3, Abdoulaye Faye 3 (sub: R Shawcross, 9 4), D Higginbotham 4 — R Delap 4, G Whelan 4, D Whitehead 5, M Ethrington 4 — R Fuller 5, D Kitson 4 (sub: Tuncay Sanli, 59 4). Substitutes not used: L Lawrence, J Beattie, D Pugh, A Wilkinson. Booked: Huth, Whelan, Whitehead. Next: Everton (h).

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Telegraph:

Chelsea 7 Stoke City 0
By Jason Burt at Stamford Bridge

In a nerveless, breathless display, Chelsea powered their way back to the top of the Premier League table, blowing Stoke City away with a hat-trick from Salomon Kalou, as they destroyed their opponents earning their biggest win of the season. The margin of victory also significantly boosted their goal difference and may be a factor in the final reckoning while it was a humiliation for Stoke.
The contest, however, was marred slightly by a bad injury to Stoke goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen who suffered a suspected broken elbow – which would put the Dane out of this summer’s World Cup Finals - after being caught by Salomon Kalou as he slid in to score Chelsea’s second goal. Fulham v Chelsea previewKalou was central to Chelsea’s performance, having stooped to head in the first goal and also earning a penalty, side-footed home by Frank Lampard.
However, he appeared to lunge to reach the ball – after Sorensen had parried Lampard’s shot – as he bundled the ball into the net for Chelsea’s second.
Chelsea’s resumed their one point lead over Manchester United and the result was rarely in doubt even though Stoke were undefeated in their previous six away league games this season.
The home side, despite missing suspended captain John Terry, took control from the start with a compelling display of attacking football. Manager Carlo Ancelotti had made five changes from the team that was defeated last weekend away to Tottenham Hotspur with Ashley Cole returning, to make his first appearance since breaking his ankle on Feb 10.
He almost opening the scoring as he rushing in to meet the ball after Sorensen had blocked another raking Lampard shot but the goalkeeper saved brilliantly with his legs to deny the defender. Soon after Sorensen again made another excellent save, pushing away a header from Didier Drogba at his near post.
He was beaten after Florent Malouda – again Chelsea’s best performer – sent a perceptive cross-field pass which was brought down with a flourish by Drogba who then crossed low for Kalou turned in from just inside the six-yard area.
After Kalou added his second, when he reached the ball after Sorensen saved from Drogba, Stoke appeared to lose heart. A third goal came when Kalou fell inside the area, following a foolish challenge by Robert Huth, even though the original offence took place outside the area. It was a soft award.
Lampard struck the spot kick to claim his 23rd goal of the season and Chelsea should probably have had another penalty when Glenn Whelan tripped Nicolas Anelka but it was unseen by referee Steve Bennett.
The second-half turned into a gentle session of keep ball for Chelsea until Kalou sprang forward from Lampard’s pass to claim his hat-trick, reacting quickly after Asmir Begovic had blocked his first shot. Chelsea suddenly shifted through the gears again. Then, somehow, from just a yard out Malouda failed to turn in Anelka’s low cross before, later, the substitute goalkeeper saved superbly from the Frenchman.
As impressive as Chelsea were, Stoke were dire and Lampard, almost nonchalantly, and expertly, flicked home a fifth from Sam Hutchinson’s deep cross. It wasn’t the end of the humiliation with another substitute Daniel Sturridge sprinting through to round Begovic and stroke the ball into the net.
It carried on with Joe Cole volleying low across the area only for Malouda to, finally, score, turning the ball in from a yard out. Sturridge may have been offside but it mattered little.

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Sun:

Chelsea 7 Stoke 0

From SHAUN CUSTIS at Stamford Bridge

The Drog showed off some new tricks, Chelsea produced goal after goal out of the hat, and the cards remain in their favour in the title race.
For the third time this season they hit seven in a game and, if it comes down to goal difference in the battle with Manchester United, they have done that argument a power of good.
Brilliant skill by Didier Drogba, 32, helped tee up young gun Salomon Kalou for the first two goals of his hat-trick and set Chelsea on course for a crushing victory which re-established their one point advantage over arch-rivals United.
Now it is on to the real crunch at Anfield next Sunday when all sorts of conundrums come into play.
The last thing Liverpool want to see is Manchester United winning the Premier League and establishing a new record of 19 title successes.
They know if they beat Chelsea that is what is likely to happen. But, at the same time, Rafa Benitez's men still have an outside chance of the last Champions League qualifying place although they know only victory can keep them in the hunt.
Even though Chelsea still have much work to do, they could finish it off next weekend should they beat Liverpool and United lose at Sunderland.
With Carlo Ancelotti's men playing first on Sunday, it's possible they could win the trophy while flying back from Merseyside.
Yesterday they did what they had to do - and more - despite United having apparently put the pressure on by virtue of their victory over Spurs the previous day.
Stoke came with a reputation as doughty fighters who, along with United, had conceded less goals away from home than any other team in the League.
They had lost only five times on their travels and were unbeaten away in the League this year.
That all suggested Chelsea were going to have to battle exceptionally hard to break them down.
As it turned out, the Blues shook Stoke till their pips squeaked.
Frank Lampard set the tone early on with a shot which was well saved by Thomas Sorensen and, as the ball ran free, Ashley Cole, playing for the first time since breaking his ankle on February 10, followed up only to be denied by the Danish keeper.
Sorensen was there again to make a superb save from Drogba's near-post header but he was finally beaten on 24 minutes.
Florent Malouda played a ball out wide to the right and Drogba showed real quality flicking out his right leg to bring the ball down before in one swift movement whipping a gorgeous low cross into the six-yard box.
Kalou, 24, read it and was virtually on his knees as he headed home.
Drogba proved his deft touch was no fluke when he was instrumental in setting up Chelsea's second for his Ivory Coast protegee on 31 minutes.
This time his outstanding touch was into Lampard's path and, though the midfielder's stinging shot was parried away by Sorensen, Kalou came sliding in to finish it off as the keeper scrambled to make up his ground.
TV replays showed Kalou had gone in two-footed and he caught Sorensen in the follow through.
The former Villa and Sunderland star, 33, was eventually carried off on a stretcher after lengthy treatment and a dislocated elbow could hit his World Cup hopes.
On came Asmir Begovic for his Potters debut but it was not long before he was picking the ball out of the net after Kalou finally went down after being tugged back by ex-Chelsea centre-back Robert Huth - again replays showed the initial offence occurred outside the box.
Up stepped Lampard to tuck the spot-kick away and Chelsea were cruising. Stoke were all over the place and Kalou completed his hat-trick - trebling his League tally for the season - when he took a pass from Lampard, fired at Begovic and, though the keeper blocked, finished off the rebound.
Florent Malouda missed a sitter from a yard out and Begovic made a great save to deny the Frenchman before sub Sam Hutchinson crossed to the far post and Lampard flicked it back across goal with the outside of his right foot for his 20th League goal of the season.
Chelsea kept going, well aware goal difference could come into play and from Drogba's pass Daniel Sturridge, another sub, rounded Begovic and shot home.
Still there was time for more and with a minute left Malouda got the goal he deserved converting Joe Cole's first-time cross.
It seems so long ago that Chelsea were losing to Spurs. This was an emphatic response to any claims they were wobbling.

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Guardian:

Salomon Kalou's hat-trick sets up Chelsea's seven-goal rout of Stoke
Kevin McCarra at Stamford Bridge

Salomon Kalou completes his hat-trick against Stoke despite the efforts of the substitute goalkeeper Asmir Begovic. Photograph: Gerry Penny/EPA
The title race was suspended. This result had its ramifications, with Chelsea now enjoying a lead of eight over Manchester United in goal difference and putting themselves in front once more by a point, but there was no sense of grand issues at stake. If anything, this was a therapeutic afternoon for Carlo Ancelotti's squad and Salomon Kalou claimed a first hat-trick at the club. This, too, was Chelsea's biggest victory in top-flight league football.
The embarrassment of Stoke City was all encompassing and Tony Pulis's side did not even maintain its dignity in the most mundane of circumstances. When the utterly ineffectual Dave Kitson was substituted he left the field with an ill-grace and a contemptuous gesture that implied he had been wronged. He should have thought himself blessed since most of his team-mates had to endure every second of the drubbing.
There was nothing unlucky about the devastation of the visitors, but there should be sympathy for their goalkeeper. Thomas Sorensen suffered an elbow injury as the second goal was scored and his participation for Denmark in the World Cup will be in doubt if there is more damage to the joint than a dislocation.
Temporary relief lay purely in his release from the unflagging menace of the opposition. Chelsea have 93 league goals to their credit, yet their leading forward, Didier Drogba, did not score here. The calibre of the line-up ought to improve a little more with the comeback of Ashley Cole from the broken ankle he sustained at Everton in February. Although he did not cut loose, these were perfect circumstances for him to settle back into the rhythm of first-team football.
He would have been delighted to reacquaint himself with the mercilessness of his fellow players. This was the sort of match where the scoring can taper off as boredom takes the edge off the side's work. Chelsea had no truck with that sort of attitude and three of their goals arrived in the last 10 minutes, with the substitute Daniel Sturridge and then Florent Malouda striking particularly close to the full-time whistle.
The value of other figures was underlined in the win. This Chelsea squad is to be revamped next season, with an eye to establishing younger players, but there have already been more subtle changes in this campaign. Malouda is fast becoming the key to the team's attacks because he now has the confidence to attempt the telling pass more often.
Even before playing a part in the opener, the Frenchman had released Drogba, only for the striker to lash an attempt off target. Chances, all the same, came regularly and Sorensen was soon making a splendid save from the Ivorian.
The Chelsea deluge began after 24 minutes. Malouda swept the ball to Drogba on the right and Kalou headed in the cross for the first of his goals. The next saw Drogba's lay-off setting up Frank Lampard for a drive that Sorensen could not hold and Kalou bundled home the loose ball. The goalkeeper, hurt in the melee, was replaced by Asmir Begovic.
The Stoke manager, Tony Pulis, had complained of favouritism towards Chelsea by referees, but he must have been devastated by a total lack of resilience in his squad and the officials can barely have caught his eye. A third goal was conceded as Frank Lampard converted a penalty in the 44th minute after Robert Huth had pulled down Kalou. His foul may have begun outside the area but Steve Bennett was right to play the advantage until the offence continued inside the box.
Lampard released Kalou after 68 minutes and the attacker, having smashed his first attempt against Begovic, turned in the rebound. There was a second goal for Lampard himself in the 81st minute when he converted a cross from the substitute Sam Hutchinson with a deft volley off the outside of his right foot. This rout has put Chelsea in a merry mood for the critical days ahead.
There is intrigue to come. Chelsea are at Anfield next Sunday. That is one of the more taxing fixtures on the calendar, but the enthusiasm of the home crowd for a win that could assist Manchester United to the title is, to put it mildly, in question. If Chelsea took the desired results while performing with this zest, however, no one could doubt the legitimacy of their triumph.

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Independent:

Ancelotti's juggernaut rolls over Stoke as Chelsea return to finest form
Chelsea 7 Stoke City 0

By Sam Wallace, Football Correspondent

In his captain's programme notes Frank Lampard revealed that the switch of this fixture to a Sunday meant that he was an absentee best man at his friend's wedding yesterday. In the end it proved so easy for Chelsea that no-one would have blamed him for leaving at half-time to make it in time for the speeches.
There have been wobbles from Carlo Ancelotti's team this season but yesterday was a vintage performance; one in which they blew their opponents away in the tradition of the very best we have witnessed from this club in the modern era. It was one of those days when the sun shone in west London and the goals just kept on coming.
If Manchester United were looking for a glimpse of weakness in the team that they must overhaul in order to win the title over the remaining two games of the season then they will not have spotted it yesterday. "Are you watching Manchester?" Stamford Bridge asked towards the end of the game. Of course they were and they will not have liked what they saw.
As the remains of Stoke City are scraped off the road, the Chelsea juggernaut now heads north to Liverpool on Sunday. The defining moment in Chelsea's pursuit of their third Premier League title will come at Anfield, the scene of some of their greatest triumphs and most crushing lows of the Roman Abramovich era. As usual it should be a classic.
In the days of Jose Mourinho, when Chelsea's domination of English football was routine for two years, Anfield stood as an outpost of resistance – never more so than the Champions League semi-final of 2005. Chelsea have not always lost there but even in spite of the form they showed yesterday, come Sunday they will still feel that old gnawing uncertainty when they walk into Anfield.
Yesterday's win over Burnley means Liverpool are still in the hunt for the fourth Champions League place, although only just. Beating Chelsea may well hand Manchester United that 19th league title which means they pass Liverpool's total but if Rafael Benitez is to be in the Champions League next year – with Liverpool rather than Juventus – then his team will have to do it anyway.
Before then, Chelsea can savour their third seven-goal haul of the season after Sunderland and Aston Villa on a day on which they made mincemeat of one of the Premier League's most awkward customers. Chelsea are five goals away from the record for the most goals scored in a Premier League season and yesterday they could have had many more than seven.
Unlike the unconvincing home win against Bolton, and the defeat to Tottenham last Saturday, there was a purpose about Chelsea – epitomised by Salomon Kalou whose hat-trick was the first in his four years at Stamford Bridge. Kalou has not always been the most reliable assassin in Chelsea's forward line but yesterday his aim was unerring.
Of equal significance was the form of Didier Drogba who was poor against Spurs but played a crucial role in three Chelsea goals. Lampard was the dominant figure in midfield and it was a good job he did not leave at half-time because that would have deprived us of the sweetest finish of all: an awkward knee high cross that he clipped in first time with the outside of his right boot for the fifth.
It did not help Stoke that they lost their goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen to injury in the course of conceding Chelsea's second on 31 minutes. With their Danish international on the pitch there might have been fewer goals but there would have been no difference about the outcome of the game.
The Stoke goalkeeper had made three very good saves when he spilled the ball from Lampard's shot and Kalou dived in two-footed to force the ball over the line, catching Sorensen as he did. Had it happened elsewhere on the pitch Kalou might have put himself in danger of being dismissed but referee Steve Bennett did not regard it as worthy of a booking.
It was a bleak day for the Stoke manager Tony Pulis whose side showed none of the backbone that has kept them in the Premier League this year. They were unfortunate with the first half injuries to Sorensen and Abdoulaye Faye but their afternoon will chiefly be remembered for Dave Kitson telling the Stoke bench to "fuck off" when he was substituted in the second half.
In fairness that is probably exactly what Stoke felt like doing. They were already 3-0 down by then. Kalou had scored a diving header in the 24th minute after Drogba had controlled a ball played behind him with a lovely piece of skill. Kalou scored the second. Then Lampard scored a penalty on 43 minutes after Robert Huth had dragged Kalou down in comedy fashion.
Joe Cole came on for Kalou after the latter has completed his hat-trick on 68 minutes – the third a rebound from his own shot. The goals came thick and fast from there. First Lampard's beautifully-taken goal from Sam Hutchinson's cross for the fifth. Then substitute Daniel Sturridge went round the goalkeeper Asmir Begovic running onto Drogba's pass.
The final goal came from Florent Malouda who had earlier missed unforgivably when Nicolas Anelka crossed in the 72nd minute. The match also marked the return to the starting XI of Ashley Cole who played like he had never been away.
Ancelotti's only regret? "I would have liked to have saved three of those goals for next week.''
Just two more wins will wrest the title from Manchester United's hands for the first time in four years but a much more formidable opponent than Stoke awaits at Anfield.

Chelsea (4-4-2): Cech; Ferreira (Hutchinson, 73), Ivanovic, Alex, A Cole; Malouda, Ballack, Lampard Kalou (J Cole, 71); Anelka (Sturridge, 79), Drogba. Substitutes not used: Hilario (gk), Zhirkov, Belletti, Van Aanholt.

Stoke (4-4-2): Sorensen (Begovic, 36); Higginbotham, Ab Faye (Shawcross, 9), Huth, Collins; Whitehead, Whelan, Delap, Etherington; Fuller, Kitson (Tuncay, 59). Substitutes not used: Lawrence, Beattie, Pugh, Wilkinson.

Referee: S Bennett (Kent).
Booked: Stoke Whitehead, Huth.

Man of the match: Kalou.
Attendance: 41,013.

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Mail:

Chelsea 7 Stoke 0: Salomon Kalou bags a treble as Blues batter Stoke to bounce back to the top of the Premier League

By Matt Lawton

And so to what Manchester United will hope is a real clash of the titans.
To next Sunday and the game that might well now determine the outcome of this intriguing Barclays Premier League title race.To Liverpool versus Chelsea, at the stadium that has brought Carlo Ancelotti’s players both pain and pleasure in the past few seasons.
A debate will rage until kick off at Anfield. The question of whether Liverpool will give their all in the vain hope of securing a Champions League place or not — and so deny United the chance to eclipse their great club with a record 19th title.The table says they have to keep fighting, however unlikely fourth seems. It says that while there is no more than a two-point spread between fourth-placed Tottenham and seventh-placed Liverpool, with Aston Villa and Manchester City wedged between, they still have to pursue what is not yet an impossible dream.
Even if they have played an extra game and might, by then, have one eye on the Europa League final. Whether they can stop Chelsea remains to be seen, because at Stamford Bridge yesterday Ancelotti’s team had the look of champions.
Sir Alex Ferguson no doubt hoped his Manchester United’s victory over Tottenham would unsettle their rivals, but no such luck.
They were as confident as their Italian manager, who having said he might head to the cinema chose instead to go for a ‘stroll in the park’ rather than sit through Saturday’s game at Old Trafford.
This, too, was a stroll in the park, and the third time this season that Chelsea have put seven past Premier League opponents. That is a remarkable achievement but, more significantly, it propelled Chelsea back to the summit with a greatly enhanced goal difference advantage over United.
From one to eight to be precise, and what Ferguson would agree is like having an extra point in the bag. Say what you want about the standard of the English game.
If Chelsea score five in their remaining two games, they will break United’s record for goals in a Premier League season and that would reflect well on Ancelotti, not least in the eyes of his employer.
Roman Abramovich has said he wants to be entertained and 93 goals in 36 games is some return whatever happens between now and May 9. They were entertaining in crushing a Stoke side that have often proved difficult opponents.Three goals from Salomon Kalou; two from Frank Lampard; one apiece for Daniel Sturridge and Florent Malouda.
‘We were murdered today,’ admitted Stoke boss Tony Pulis.
‘We were lucky to get zero.’
Didier Drogba did not score but his support play was superb, while there was the added bonus of seeing Ashley Cole return with style after a two-month injury lay-off.
Not even the absence of John Terry unsettled Chelsea. When Rory Delap was invited to launch one of his long throws, Chelsea dealt with the danger calmly and effectively.
Pulis made no excuses, refusing to even blame the two-footed finish from Kalou that left goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen nursing a dislocated elbow.
Instead, he blamed the ‘five or six players who went missing’.
Sorensen had done well to keep the scores level for 24 minutes, denying Ashley Cole and Drogba with two excellent saves, but when Drobga brought down a ball from Malouda with a raised right heel — an extraordinary piece of skill — and then drove in a cross, Ryan Shawcross allowed Kalou to score with a super diving header.
Kalou’s finish was more controversial shortly after. Having seen Sorensen parry a shot from Lampard, Kalou launched his feet at the ball but also took the man in the process of scoring.
What could have been a disallowed goal and a red card ended with Chelsea’s advantage being doubled. The penalty, awarded for Robert Huth’s foul on Kalou was equally dubious.
The rugby-style challenge seemed to be outside the box, but Steve Bennett pointed to the spot and Lampard celebrated the Player of the Season award he received before kick off with his 24th goal of the campaign.
With Stoke in disarray and Dave Kitson seemingly telling the bench to ‘f*** off’ after being substituted, Kalou completed his first Chelsea hat-trick in the 68th minute.After meeting a delightful chip from Lampard, the Ivory Coast star’s first shot was saved by substitute Asmir Begovic, but he scored with his second effort.
The finest goal then followed from Lampard; a brilliant volley with the outside of his right foot that diverted a cross from Sam Hutchinson beyond the keeper.Drogba’s pass invited Sturridge to accelerate past Begovic and score with his left foot for No 6 and Joe Cole crossed for Malouda to make it seven.‘Are you watching Manchester,’ cried jubilant Chelsea fans. Ferguson might not have been, but you can bet he will be tuning in for Sunday’s clash at Anfield.

MATCH FACTS Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech 6; Ferreira 7(Hutchinson 73min, 7), Ivanovic 7, Alex 7,A Cole 7; Lampard 8, Ballack 7,Malouda 7; Kalou 9 (J Cole 71, 7),Drogba 8, Anelka 7 (Sturridge 79, 7).
Stoke (4-4-2): Sorensen 6 (Begovic 36,5); Higginbotham 5, Faye 5 (Shawcross9, 4), Huth 4, Collins 4; Whitehead 5,Whelan 5, Delap 5, Etherington 5;Fuller 6, Kitson 4 (Tuncay 59, 5).Booked: Whelan, Whitehead, Huth.

Man of the match: Salomon Kalou.Referee: Steve Bennett.

* Chelsea have scored 33 goalsin eight Premier League games
at home this year.
* They have scored 60 at home in18 PL games this season.
* With 93 PL goals, they can stillhit a ton with two matches to go.

tottenham 1-2

Sunday Times

Tottenham halt ten-man Chelsea march to title with devastating defeat

Tottenham 2 Chelsea 1

Paul Rowan at White Hart Lane

THOSE who were predicting a stroll to the title for Chelsea — some bookies even had Manchester United at 6-1 last week to retain their crown — were shown to be foolishly premature in their assumptions when Carlo Ancelotti’s side failed a big test at White Hart Lane last night in a manner that seriously questions their ability to close out the deal over the next three games.
Chelsea not only lost the battle and the game but, most worryingly, also lost their heads as their increasingly brittle captain, John Terry, was sent off halfway through the second half after two stupid tackles in the space of four minutes, just when his leadership was needed to get his side back into the game. Fabio Capello, watching in the stands, will be deeply concerned at the form of the England centre-half, who has been erratic at best since he was caught in a scandal over his private life and has now been sent off four times in the Premier League.
Spurs, meanwhile, were celebrating their second victory over a top-three side in four days and savouring once again the prospect of Champions League football after first-half goals from Jermain Defoe and the excellent Gareth Bale gave them a fully deserved victory.
While Chelsea eventually splintered, Spurs in this mood look irresistible, as Arsenal found out in midweek, with Bale delivering again on his outstanding promise, Roman Pavlyuchenko scaring defences every time he touches the ball and Michael Dawson imperious at the back. Manchester United are next up for Tottenham, though Chelsea will be hoping rather than expecting that their London rivals can take this form to Old Trafford.
“We played soft,” Ancelotti conceded. “When we lost Terry it became impossible to recover with 10 against 11. He tried to do his best but Terry is under pressure. Everybody is under pressure at this moment.We must not be afraid. We mustn’t panic. Every team would want to be in our place. ”
Spurs started where they left off in midweek against Arsenal and were ahead within 15 minutes. The pressure had been building steadily on referee Phil Dowd with a succession of close calls around the Chelsea penalty box. First Terry was lucky to escape being penalised when he clumsily tackled Defoe and then John Obi Mikel survived a big penalty shout arising out of what looked a fair tackle on Bale.
Moments later, David Bentley whipped in a cross from the left wing and Pavlyuchenko threw himself at the ball and may have made contact before it collided heavily with the right arm of Terry. It was a less obvious handball than the one Terry escaped with in midweek against Bolton but Dowd rather harshly awarded it and Defoe, who had missed two from the spot this season, blasted the penalty past Petr Cech.
Spurs were buzzing, with Luka Modric controlling matters in the centre and Bale a constant menace down the left. They might have gone further ahead on 25 minutes when Pavlyuchenko turned Terry all too easily but his shot from the edge of the box was spectacularly saved by Cech. Chelsea had began to claw their way back but they conceded the second just before half-time. Hugging the touchline by the half-way line, Bale played a give and go with Pavlyuchenko and, while Paulo Ferreira managed to keep up with the flying Welshman, he wasn’t able to respond when Bale turned inside him. From the left side of the penalty area Bale then launched a powerful shot low inside Cech’s near post.
As the Spurs fans celebrated, Gomes produced a brilliant save from a Frank Lampard volley on the stroke of half-time that was another huge boost to the home side. Drastic action was needed from Ancelotti and he introduced Nicolas Anelka and Branislav Ivanovic at half-time, Michael Ballack having come on earlier for the injured Mikel. The Italian’s boldness appeared to backfire as Didier Drogba seemed to pull up with a strain before the second half had resumed, but he hobbled on with his customary painful grimace without ever being effective. Shortly after half- time, Cech pulled off a brilliant save from Defoe, who had been put through by Pavlyuchenko. Chelsea couldn’t handle the Russian except by hauling him down and Terry was booked for doing so on 63 minutes as the attacker closed in.
That was the cue for the former England captain to lose his head, only a week after he had been very lucky to stay on the pitch in the FA Cup semifinal against Aston Villa. Spurs raided this time down the left with Bale played through by Defoe and Terry slid in with astonishing recklessness to earn a second yellow card. His previous dismissal was also when Dowd officiated, at Everton in December 2008.
Faced with a big decision about removing Terry from the captaincy, Capello now might have an even bigger one when deciding who will partner Rio Ferdinand. Lampard’s goal from close range in stoppage time added a gloss to the scoreline that merely flattered the aspirants to the title.

Star man: Gareth Bale (Tottenham)

Yellow cards: Tottenham: Huddlestone, Pavlyuchenko Chelsea: Terry, Alex, Deco, Zhirkov

Red card: Chelsea: Terry

Referee: P Dowd Attendance: 35,814

Tottenham: Gomes 8, Kaboul 7, Bassong 7, Dawson 8, Assou-Ekotto 7, Bentley 7, Huddlestone 6, Modric 7, Bale 8; Pavlyuchenko 8, Defoe 7

Chelsea: Cech 6, Ferreira 5 (Ivanovic ht, 6), Terry 3, Alex 6, Zhirkov 6; Mikel 5 (Ballack 33, 6); J Cole 4 (Anelka ht, 6), Deco 5, Lampard 6, Malouda 5, Drogba 4

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

Telegraph:
Tottenham Hotspur 2 Chelsea 1
By John Ley

Two down, one to go. Having beaten Arsenal in midweek, Tottenham threatened Chelsea’s advances on the Premier League crown with another remarkable performance. Back in Manchester, Sir Alex Ferguson must have experienced mixed feelings; the joy of seeing Chelsea falter will be tempered by the knowledge that Manchester United’s next test is against North London’s prize scalp hunters.
This thoroughly deserved victory, earned by an early penalty from Jermain Defoe and a second goal in four days from Gareth Bale at the end of the first half, not only denied Chelsea the chance to re-open the gap to four points but, deliciously, opens the title race to a third party again. Arsenal, having thrown the towel in here on Wednesday, can move to within three points of leaders United with a win at Wigan on Sunday.
And for Chelsea this was a game in which anything that could go wrong did just that. Captain John Terry, who conceded the early penalty, was sent off in the 67th minute, for the second of two yellow cards and will miss the visit next Sunday, of Stoke.
While Chelsea and United are now separated by one point with nine to play for, Spurs are back into fourth – with a game in hand and with Champions League football looking more likely with each shock.
Indeed, there is a new confidence about Tottenham and, as the sun began to set in North London, so they proved that a new dawn is coming to the Lane. With the game still in its infancy Spurs pushed forward and after Roman Pavlyuchenko had a shot blocked, Defoe appeared to have his arm pulled by Terry just outside the area but referee Phil Dowd played on.
Dowd refused to be convinced that when Bale fell under John Obi Mikel’s challenge but had no doubts when, in the 15th minute, Terry handled Pavlyuchenko’s cross. For those who had witnessed Terry escape a similar penalty claim against Bolton in midweek, justice was seen to be done.
Spurs have had a problem from the penalty spot, with Defoe missibng six of his previous 10 attempts, yet he struck this one perfectly and Spurs were on course for another famous scalp.
Pavlyuchenko and David Bentley both went close as Chelsea became swamped in midfield and they were forced to make a change in the 33rd minute when Michael Ballack replaced the struggling Mikel. And it got worse for Chelsea five minutes later when they had a goal disallowed, though nobody could complain when both Florent Malouda, who slipped the ball under Heurelho Gomes, and Joe Cole were given offside.
And then came the 44th minute second goal and with it a signal to Manchester that the title race is definitely on again. Bale exchanged passes with Pavlyuchenko, stole forward, slipped inside Paulo Ferreira and found the bottom left corner with his right foot. Clearly Bale enjoys the top stage.
At half time Terry was the target for abuse from a Spurs fan as he entered the tunnel. The supporter was led away by security staff.
If the events of the first half were not remarkable enough, what happened at the start of the second half were quite amazing. Carlo Ancelotti gambled with a double substitution, Joe Cole and Paulo Ferreira making way for Nicolas Anelka and Branislav Ivanovic, but Didier Drogba pulled up in pain before the kick-off, ran to the bench and indicated that he had damaged his groin. Dowd refused to allow Chelsea to alter their substitution and Drogba reluctantly returned, albeit at half pace.
Chelsea’s frustration spilled over in the 53rd minute when Lampard’s challenge on Modric sparked a brief but ugly 18-man brawl, after which Tom Huddlestone and Deco were booked.
Terry was also cautioned, for a foul on Pavlyuchenko and, just minutes later, he slid into Bale and was shown a second yellow card and Chelsea were left to hang on as Spurs dominated the closing stages with Cech making vital saves to prevent a landslide.
Lampard’s added time goal, from Ballack’s cross, came too late for Chelsea.

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

NOTW:

JT SEES RED AND BLUES ARE LOOKING BALEFUL
Tottenham 2 Chelsea 1

By Andy Dunn

NO bare chest with armband straining around a proud bicep this time. No tossing mementoes into an adoring swell of support.
Just a painful walk from the man who has made a good few of those in his time.
As John Terry flicked the captaincy to Frank Lampard and strode off with a sense of injustice, Carlo Ancelotti clasped his hands together in that typically Italian prayer-like way.
Out of the clear blue heavens, a bolt had struck Chelsea, JT, Ancelotti and their procession to the title.
They might recover from this. They might not miss Terry too much when Stoke arrive next Sunday. Ancelotti might even recover his composure after a tumultuous evening.
But whether or not Chelsea regain their nerve is another matter.
This was not only a setback in the table - this was a psychological hammer blow.
Chelsea were overwhelmed.
Forget the fraught flurry after Lampard had pilfered an injury-time goal, this was a thumping triumph.
As they slumped away from White Hart Lane, there was only one tangible consolation... their goal difference had escaped a pummeling.
No excuses, no match for Spurs in physique or talent and, after Phil Dowd's two yellow cards, no skipper.
And, perhaps more significantly, no discipline.
Under the increasingly bemused gaze of one of football's calmest coaches, Ancelotti's Chelsea lost it.
It's hard to put it in any other fashion.
Terry's ragged, on-the-edge display summed it up. He was a sending-off waiting to happen.
Or maybe the bizarre happenings at the start of the second half - when Didier Drogba suddenly developed an injury without kicking a ball and all three substitutes had been used - typified Chelsea's disarray more colourfully.
But to dwell on the whole swathe of Chelsea deficiencies would do grave injustice to a remarkable Tottenham.
It may not have been sweeter but it was stronger than the display against Arsenal.
Michael Dawson is proving an inspirational captain, Heurelho Gomes having the time of his life, Tom Duddlestone dominant, the combination of Jermain Defoe and Roman Pavlyuchenko crackling with ingenuity and velocity.
But if one man symbolises this vibrant Spurs, it has to be Gareth Bale.
Bale runs longer than an election campaign. He doesn't have a rest at half-time, he has a service.
But it's not just miles he puts on the clock. At 20 years of age, Bale is developing into an identikit Premier League footballer.
Versatile with a voracious appetite for work and no little talent.
He could not have caused more havoc had he been erupting lava.
Three quality crosses were only ricochets away from tangible results before Bale plumped for a solo surge.
Jon Obi Mikel was later than a flight home with his token challenge but perhaps the evening sun bedazzled Dowd. For that poor call alone, Spurs deserved the benefit of the doubt.
It came when David Bentley had a second bite from a corner (won, almost inevitably, by Bale) and as his cross spirited its way through a tangle of Nikes, Terry stooped with face, shoulder and arm leaning towards the ball.
It might have hit a combination of all three but Terry's protests would have fallen on unsympathetic ears around the land.
Defoe's emphatic conversion belied his pretty appalling penalty record.
The watching Fabio Capello will have been comforted - with Defoe's confidence, that is, not the startling recurrence of Terry's uncertainty.
In mitigation, Terry could have pointed to the paper-thin defensive shield provided by Mikel, who soon hobbled off for Michael Ballack.
Not that the German offers a lot more in the work-rate department.
And hard work was just one of the qualities Chelsea were short of yesterday.
Considering their exertions against Arsenal, Harry Redknapp's side might have been excused a degree of lethargy.
But they were bullyingly more powerful.
And in Bale, have a player whose battery never blinks.
When Pavlyuchenko slipped Bale into a confrontation with Paulo Ferreira, trouble must have filled Ancelotti's nostrils.
Ferreira froze, allowing Bale to drift inside and thread a right-footed shot between Petr Cech and post.
Ancelotti shrunk into his bucket seat.
To think Bale was once the jinx in this team. In his first 25 League games for Spurs, he was never on the winning side.
He almost became a figure of slight ridicule - somewhat as Gomes once was.
Those days are distant, barely believable memories around here.
Gomes was a one-man Jumbotron highlights package prior to kick-off and while a couple of yesterday's efforts would have struggled to make the final cut, they were impressive all the same.
Gomes may have exaggerated fending away Florent Malouda's effort but he got horizontally airborne to deal with a sumptuous Lampard volley.
Had it beaten Gomes, that might have dissuaded Ancelotti from sending on Branislav Ivanovic and Nicolas Anelka, exhausting his substitute options.
And never has a gamble seemed to have backfired so quickly and so freakishly.
Raising his leg to prepare for the restart, Drogba appeared to feel something remiss in his groin or his thigh.
He limped over to where Ancelotti and his staff were remonstrating, pleading, begging, harassing, call it what you will, with the fourth official.
The gist was 'Can we change our mind?'. It was desperate stuff.
Drogba returned to action and, in fairness, never shirked from the physical challenges.
But both physically and mentally, Chelsea were simply not dialled in. Even a minor brawl - instigated by a frustrated Lampard kick at Huddlestone - could not lift them.
And had Cech not denied Defoe so commendably, this contest would have been over a while before Terry committed himself to what was always going to be a bookable foul on a rampaging Bale.
The trouble was that, just 3min 25sec earlier, Terry had also rashly halted Pavlyuchenko.
Capello's stern look said an awful lot. But maybe if he loses faith with Terry, Capello can turn to Dawson, who was once again immense at the heart of defence.
He could even be a future leader, judging by the way he cajoled, led by example... and celebrated a win that should have been achieved without three nailbiting minutes after Lampard converted Ballack's injury-time cross.
But it was Dawson who stood firm amidst a frantic late assault while Pavlyuchenko squandered a great chance to ease nerves.
It was one of those sort of nights.
Spurs go marching on, the tannoy blared. It was right.
For the battered and tattered of Chelsea, the battle starts all over again.

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

Mail:

Tottenham 2 Chelsea 1: Leaders lose grip as John Terry is sent off, while Spurs climb to fourth

By Patrick Collins

On an extraordinary evening at White Hart Lane, Chelsea lost their captain, their composure and the impressive air of certainty which once attended their challenge for the Premier League title.
And as the significance of the day started to sink in, Harry Redknapp delivered this impeccable summary: ‘The championship is wide open again.’
A combination of Paul Scholes’ belated goal at Eastlands, the spirited excellence of Redknapp’s Spurs and the crass irresponsibility of John Terry have postponed Chelsea’s coronation and prepared our finest football teams for a battle to the death.
The only certainty is that this title will be hard won.
But if Scholes’ contribution was dramatic and Tottenham’s simply admirable, then Terry’s was by far the most disturbing.
Beneath the gimlet stare of Fabio Capello, Terry had spent an uncomfortable, unconvincing hour or so against the pace and movement of Jermain Defoe and Roman Pavlyuchenko. He had conceded a penalty in 15 minutes, moving his arm instinctively, almost involuntarily to a ball in the area. Having escaped a time or two recently, the Chelsea captain appears to think it entirely legal.
Referee Phil Dowd corrected him and awarded a penalty Defoe converted with a gleeful thump.
Terry grew more vulnerable and in 63 minutes he was booked for a crude trip on Pavlyuchenko. And then, three minutes later, the roof fell in. Defoe came stepping nimbly along the left touchline and played a pass into Gareth Bale.
As the Spurs player moved on to the ball, Terry came across at speed, plunging into a tackle which was as self-indulgent as it was reckless. Dowd made the easiest decision of the night when he sent him off.
Terry being Terry, he paused for a menacing word with the blameless Bale. Significantly, the captain’s colleagues were not inclined to argue. One wonders just what Capello made of such idiocy. And one wonders if Terry’s World Cup place is quite as secure as we used to think.
None of which should distract from Spurs’ performance. They pursued their goal of fourth place with style and assurance. They never allowed Chelsea a moment’s luxury on the ball, in Bale they had the game’s outstanding performer, and they fully deserved the matchwinning advantage which their first-half display secured.
A week which had started with a calamitous FA Cup semi-final loss to Portsmouth was transformed by a distinguished midweek win over Arsenal.
Somebody said, with cavalier disdain for cliche, that it all depends which Spurs side turn up.
In fact, they revealed a genuine relish for the task.
They attacked with pace, expressing themselves resourcefully, stretching Chelsea, enjoying the breathing space of the penalty goal.
Chelsea slowly discovered their passing game, forcing Spurs to chase in hope. But again, fortune deserted them in 37 minutes when Florent Malouda’s scoring touch was ruled out for a marginal offside.
But the decisive moment arrived seven minutes later. Bale swapped passes with Pavlyuchenko, Paulo Ferreira backed off to a dangerous degree, allowing the Tottenham player time to assess his options. And Bale chose to smash it into the bottom corner.
The old place fairly shook with the noise of celebration.
A touch of farce entered proceedings at the start of the second half. Nicolas Anelka and Branislav Ivanovic came in for Joe Cole and Ferreira. Then, seconds before the restart, Didier Drogba came limping to the sideline with a groin strain.
Chelsea tried to reorganise but with Michael Ballack having already replaced injured John Obi Mikel, all the substitutes had been used. So Drogba had to stay around, while a kind of chaos reigned.
The 53rd minute brought further chaos, when Frank Lampard’s tackle on Tom Huddlestone provoked a brawl. Deco and Huddlestone were booked, Lampard, obscurely, escaped.
By then, Defoe should have ended all the arguments but his shot was undisciplined and Petr Cech parried it past a post, with Chelsea in total disarray.
Spurs were coming home with some ease, the only interruption to their progress being the goal which Lampard accepted in added time.
Even then, Pavlyuchenko should have added a touch of reality to the score, but he managed the miss of the night.
It did not matter. Chelsea were finished.
With a point’s advantage and three to play, they must remain favourites. But it will be more difficult, much more pressurised. Nothing is certain. And now they must wait, and wonder.

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

Independent:

Bale makes hay as hot Spurs stun Blues
Tottenham Hotspur 2 Chelsea 1:
Terry shown red card in miserable Chelsea display which cuts their lead at top and allows Tottenham to leapfrog City

By Steve Tongue at White Hart Lane

Relishing their role as kingmakers, Tottenham Hotspur last night did unto Chelsea as they had done to equally unloved London rivals in Arsenal, thereby opening up a convoluted Premier League race which Chelsea would have hoped to close out until yesterday's dramatic derbies in east Manchester and north London. More importantly for their own ambitions, Spurs were able to move above Manchester City, and go two points clear in fourth place before they visit Manchester United on Saturday.
Sir Alex Ferguson should have a whole case of best Bordeaux ready for Tottenham's Harry Redknapp, in the knowledge that his team could now regain the leadership before Chelsea play again, at home to Stoke a week today.
For that game against Stoke's aerial bombardment, the leaders will be without their captain John Terry, who conceded a penalty for the first goal, and was then sent off for two tackles within the space of three minutes.
Yesterday they looked the tired team, even though it was Tottenham who had gone through the more demanding midweek engagement, and with one day less to rest. Chelsea were so out of sorts that Carlo Ancelotti made his three substitutions before the start of the second half, prompting a bizarre incident in which Didier Drogba appeared to want to come off as well. Drogba had no joy whatsoever out of the outstanding Michael Dawson, who must have impressed England manager Fabio Capello – far more so on this day than Terry.
Joe Cole and Paulo Ferreira were hauled off at half-time, having been unable to stem the flow of Spurs attacks down the Chelsea right, in which Gareth Bale confirmed his emerging status as one of the bright young men of British football.
Tottenham were again unable to select Aaron Lennon, Niko Kranjcar or Jermaine Jenas in that midfield area, yet still Chelsea could not take a grip, before or after John Obi Mikel was injured. Their goal, by Frank Lampard, was too late to matter and only came after the home side spurned numerous chances on the counter-attack.
"After the disappointment of last Sunday [in the FA Cup semi-final], it's been two unbelievable performances against Arsenal and Chelsea," Redknapp said. "We had to raise our game again and did even better than against Arsenal. It's still going to be tight [for fourth place] but we can go to Old Trafford and give it a real go."
Ancelotti could find few consolations in his team's performance, only in the League table. He had pledged "the same mentality, same philosophy" as in the recent victory away to United, which should have meant starting at a high tempo and taking the game to the home side. His team not only failed to do so, but were left in arrears within a quarter of an hour and two goals down by the interval.
If the referee Phil Dowd was a key figure in the early period of pressure, he made it third time lucky for Spurs, third time unlucky for the visitors, who many were convinced should have conceded two penalties in an edgy victory over Bolton in midweek. Dowd turned down appeals when Terry appeared to foul Jermain Defoe and then when Mikel tackled Bale.
At the third time of shouting, however, Spurs were granted their wish. Roman Pavlyuchenko drove the ball across and Terry, as he had done in midweek, failed to take his arm away. Defoe, by no means a deadeye from the penalty spot recently, emphatically beat Petr Cech.
Two minutes before half-time, a difficult situation for Chelsea became critical. Pavlyuchenko sent Bale down the left to cut inside Ferreira and score at the near post with his supposedly weaker right foot. Chelsea, who deserved no better, were denied a way back into the game in the last attack of the half. Yuri Zhirkov crossed from the left and Lampard hit a brutal volley that Heurelho Gomes saved in as thrilling a fashion as he had denied Arsenal three days earlier.
Making two changes at the interval, with Ballack already on for Mikel, was a dangerous ploy at such an early stage that illustrated Chelsea's desperation. Even before the restart Drogba limped to the touchline holding his groin but he was soon back in the thick of an increasingly furious game that spilled over into one of those ridiculous mass confrontations after Lampard fouled Luka Modric.
Tottenham kept the upper hand and the pressure they were exerting was reflected in Terry's reckless tackling. He brought down Pavyluchenko and in almost the next attack did the same to Bale. As five minutes of added time began, Lampard slid in Ballack's cross but by then the game should have been long beyond them. The title is still within reach, just.

Attendance: 35,814
Referee: Phil Dowd
Man of the match: Bale.
Match rating: 8/10

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

Observer:

Gareth Bale and Tottenham slice through Chelsea's title pretensions
Tottenham Hotspur 2 Defoe (pen) 15, Bale 44 Chelsea 1 Lampard 90
Amy Lawrence at White Hart Lane

Gareth Bale scored an outstanding goal for Tottenham's second, also his second of the week against the club's major London rivals. Photograph: Tony Marshall/EMPICS Sport
Before kick-off, it was easy to poke fun at the eternally optimistic Tottenham supporter who laid a heavy sum on his team to beat Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United at odds of 40-1. Well, well, well. One thing is sure, Carlo Ancelotti will be desperate for Spurs to put in such a sparkling performance next weekend at Old Trafford.
Harry Redknapp's team are suddenly surfing atop a wave of adrenalin and excitement, and two outstanding results have bounced them back into a Champions League position. Chelsea departed White Hart Lane with their momentum battered and their egos bruised. Their lead at the Premier League summit has been trimmed to a point, and a goal difference only three better than the scrapping, lurking, defending champions.
It was a dreadful evening for Chelsea, who lost their captain to a self-inflicted red card, their tempers in a situation they could not handle, and their comfortable cushion in the title race. "We were a bit down," conceded Ancelotti. "But we have to stay calm. We are top of the table and I think we have less pressure than the other teams."
John Terry seems to have had a pretty uneventful match against Spurs: four tackles won from four as well as a couple of free-kicks to boot. But those three red dots tell the story of his team's demise at White Hart Lane - the first marks his concession of a penalty for handball; the other two denote consecutive yellow cards inside five minutes. But what an extraordinary week for Spurs. Floored by Portsmouth in the FA Cup over two hours on the Wembley quagmire, they responded to scalp two London rivals who like to consider themselves superior. Top marks for character as well as craft. "Two unbelievable performances and well-deserved," concluded Harry Redknapp.
His team set about their task with relish, evidently buoyed by their long-awaited win over Arsenal. Luka Modric used the ball craftily, Gareth Bale galloped forward with his engine in overdrive. Roman Pavlyuchenko's drifting movement and willingness to shoot stretched the Chelsea defence. Further back Michael Dawson was watertight.
Tottenham upped the pressure with a rush of big appeals just before the quarter-hour. First, Terry tangled with Jermain Defoe on the edge of the area, next Bale tumbled fractionally ahead of Mikel John Obi's challenge, then Pavlyuchenko's acrobatic flick was brushed away by a vague combination of Terry's nodded head and upper arm.
It was third time lucky. To Terry's astonishment the referee, Phil Dowd, pointed to the spot. Defoe, who choked with a couple of penalties earlier in the season, was eager to take responsibilty and he nervelessly cracked his shot past Petr Cech.
Defoe cantered off to celebrate. Terry argued with Dowd and, as if to back him up, even Redknapp admitted later the decision was harsh. Mind you, perhaps there was some karmic force at work which evened out some of the fortune that smiled on Chelsea regarding penalty appeals for Bolton last week.
There were plentiful opportunities to double the home advantage before half-time, with Pavlyuchenko and David Bentley rattling at Chelsea's ramparts, before Bale stormed the barricades. He made mincemeat of Paulo Ferreira, jinked inside his man, and proved surprisingly deadly with his right foot. Cech was certainly stunned as the Welshman arrowed his shot in at the near post.
Ancelotti had urged Chelsea to replicate their commanding performance at Old Trafford this month. Hmmm. His team were second best. Outmanoeuvred in midfield, outrun at the back, and snuffed out up front, with Heurelho Gomes again formidable.
The second half started badly as Didier Drogba felt his groin just before the restart and limped to the sidelines even though Ancelotti had just brought on all of his substitutes. Frustration began to gnaw, and Lampard kicked out at Tom Huddlestone.
Tempers frayed as both sets of players sprinted to the scene of a little dust-up.
Just what Chelsea needed at such a delicate moment was for Terry to start lunging into tackles with reckless imprecision. So soon after the dangerous pounce at James Milner's knee, Fabio Capello again looked on as the deposed England captain overstepped the line of riskiness. Two late tackles within three minutes left Dowd with no option but to dismiss Terry for two bookable offences. Chelsea did cause some late nerves when Lampard poked in Michael Ballack's cross in stoppage time, but Tottenham deservedly hung on for another momentous result.
"We missed four or five chances to kill them off," said Redknapp. "One last shot at goal and anything can happen, but luckily it didn't. If you had offered me five points from these three games I'd have snapped your hand off. We've got six already, so we can go to Old Trafford and give it our best shot."

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

bolton 1-0

The Times

Nicolas Anelka header takes Chelsea four points clear at the top

Tom Dart


Who would be a pundit in a season such as this, a capricious campaign that has rejected the routine and scorned the expected? The only thing it is safe to assume is that nothing is safe to assume.
Although Chelsea moved four points clear of Manchester United at the head of the Barclays Premier League table, their passage past a sprightly and bold Bolton Wanderers was far less serene than Sir Alex Ferguson, the United manager, had publicly anticipated when he claimed this match would be “easy” for his rivals.
Some analysts used the comment as proof that the Scot is a fiendish master of mind games, though history and the form guide suggested it would have been equally valid to describe him as a man who states the bleedin’ obvious.
Of course a home game against Bolton should be simple for Chelsea. The two previous fixtures between the clubs — one in the league, one in the Carling Cup, in the space of three days last October — were 4-0 wins for Carlo Ancelotti’s side. Bolton last won at Stamford Bridge in December, 2003 — thanks to a 90th-minute own goal from John Terry.
Yet this was far from comfortable, even after Chelsea seized the lead. The result suggests the title is near-certain; the performance tells another tale. It was nervous, not imperious.
Near its conclusion the match was even poised to echo a nightmare from two years ago today. On April 14, 2008, Chelsea were labouring to a 1-0 win over Wigan Athletic when that lethal predator, Emile Heskey, struck in injury time to steal Wigan a point that severely dented Chelsea’s hopes of catching United and taking the title.
As Bolton menaced, a similarly late jolt looked possible right up until the moment that Lee Probert, the referee, ended the contest. A surprise might have come sooner had Probert accepted either of two strong Bolton penalty shouts for handball — the first against Didier Drogba in the first half, the second against Terry after the break. For the second successive match, Chelsea benefited from some laissez-faire officiating.
Chelsea have risen from third in the table and four points behind United three weeks ago — albeit with a game in hand. However, there are trips to White Hart Lane and Anfield ahead and near the end, as Johan Elmander and Ivan Klasnic, two Bolton substitutes, put decent chances narrowly wide and the Stamford Bridge crowd bayed and begged for the final whistle, this seemed less a march towards the title than a tip-toe on tenterhooks.
It transpired that the most dubious piece of pre-match pontificating came not from Ferguson but Kevin Davies, the Bolton striker, on the lack of rapport between Nicolas Anelka and Drogba. “There doesn’t seem to be a great bond when they play together,” Davies said. As Drogba crossed for Anelka to score the winning goal in the first half, theirs did not exactly seem a “bond” in urgent need of repair.
While Chelsea were fluent in attack, their play nearer their own goal was pockmarked with slack passing and poor positioning that gave the visiting team cause for optimism.
Jack Wilshere — on loan at Bolton from Arsenal and therefore especially motivated to stop Chelsea — hinted at the dynamism and delicacy that makes him such a hot prospect. Bolton’s best opportunity of the first half came after 15 minutes. Lee Chung Yong crossed from the right, Petr Cech advanced out of his goal to collect but collided with Matt Taylor. The ball went loose and Taylor directed it towards goal. However, the angle was against him and Paulo Ferreira recovered to clear.
Five minutes later, Davies and Yuri Zhirkov clashed heads as the Chelsea defender made a crucial aerial clearance. Bashed and bloodied, the Russian continued after lengthy treatment, although his head was bandaged to such an extent that he looked like someone in the early stages of mummification.
After 25 minutes, a Drogba free kick was struck firmly but straight at Jussi Jaaskelainen, the Bolton goalkeeper, who parried it straight at the onrushing Salomon Kalou. The forward had no time to react and the ball cannoned off him and just wide.
A Chelsea header did drop between the posts two minutes before half-time, as Anelka, three yards out and central, converted Drogba’s sumptuous left-footed, left-wing cross.
Relief for the team as a whole and the scorer in particular: it was Anelka’s first goal since January 30, ending a barren streak of 13 successive games.
While the perfection of the pass left Bolton bamboozled in central defence, the goal perhaps implied a degree of tactical looseness on Chelsea’s part since Anelka was nominally deployed on the left wing while Drogba was designated as the central striker.
No less strange was the incident that led to Bolton’s first penalty claim, earlier in the half. Drogba seemed to use his hand as he cleared the ball under pressure from Davies in his own box, but why was he so far back in the first place?
Chelsea pressed with more focus in the early stages of the second period and should have doubled their lead after 54 minutes. Drogba put Kalou clean through, but Jaaskelainen rushed out smartly and deflected the shot wide with his outstretched left leg.
Yet while Chelsea’s lead was so narrow, they remained on edge. Just after the hour, the Bolton bench furiously and fruitlessly claimed that a Lee cross struck John Terry on the upper arm inside the penalty area. Then, seconds after a drilled effort from Zhirkov forced Jaaskelainen into another decent stop, Taylor almost surged clear at the other end.
Frank Lampard, hitherto as quiet as a Trappist, hit the post from distance inside the final 15 minutes, and Joe Cole came on for a lively cameo, but it was Chelsea, not Bolton, circling the wagons around their penalty area at the end.
In this week of manifestos, Terry issued his own via his programme notes: “We haven’t won the league for the last three years. We’ve won the FA Cup twice in that time. We’ve never won the league and Cup double. In my lifetime only Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal have. Let’s make history.”
A powerful rallying cry, but while few games remain, there is still a fair way for Chelsea to go.

Chelsea (4-1-4-1): P Cech — P Ferreira, Alex, J Terry, Y Zhirkov — J O Mikel — S Kalou (sub: J Cole, 77 min), M Ballack, F Lampard, N Anelka (sub: F Malouda, 67) — D Drogba. Substitutes not used: Hilário, Deco, D Sturridge, J Bruma, P van Aanholt. Booked: Alex.

Bolton Wanderers (4-5-1): J Jaaskelainen — G Steinsson, C Cahill, Z Knight, P Robinson — Lee Chung Yong (sub: I Klasnic, 82), F Muamba, J Wilshere (sub: J Elmander, 82), S Ricketts, M Taylor — K Davies. Substitutes not used: A Al Habsi, J Samuel, M Davies, T Cohen, V Weiss. Booked: Steinsson, Robinson, Elmander, Davies.

Referee: L Probert.

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

Telegraph:

Chelsea 1 Bolton Wanderers 0
By Henry Winter

Chelsea made hard work of the “easy game" in Sir Alex Ferguson’s estimation but they still inched closer towards taking the title off Manchester United. Nicolas Anelka’s first-half header, elegantly created by Didier Drogba, lifted Carlo Ancelotti’s side four points clear with four games remaining.
Chelsea seemed plagued by final-lap nerves, although they were simply not allowed to settle by Owen Coyle’s energetic, well-organised Bolton side. Kevin Davies and Jack Wilshere troubled Chelsea’s defence and when the final whistle blew, the roar around the Bridge could have been heard in a certain Wilmslow household.
Sport on television Ancelotti had elected to rest Florent Malouda, who at least had the consolation of receiving the Barclays Player of the Month award for March before joining Deco and Joe Cole on the bench. Anelka assumed Malouda’s role attacking down the left, tucked inside as Chelsea used a Christmas tree formation, although his first-half goal arrived when momentarily switching positions with Drogba.
Until that productive, if temporary swap, Drogba had charged through the middle, given an early chance after Yuri Zhirkov glided past Chung-Yong Lee and Frank Lampard dummied. The ball sped through to Drogba, whose shot flew over.
For a while Chelsea seemed distracted after John Terry went down, and stayed down for a minute after taking a knock on his ankle in making a block tackle on Matty Taylor. Swift attention came from Lee Probert, who had replaced Chris Foy after the latter was named referee for the FA Cup final involving Chelsea and Portsmouth. Probert checked on Terry, who eventually limped back into the fray, much to the relief of the watching Fabio Capello.
The Double-chasers lacked concentration for a 15-minute period, allowing Bolton moments of hope. Coyle’s visitors were far from overawed, far from parking the bus. Two banks of four blocked Chelsea’s path towards Jussi Jaaskelainen’s goal for 44 minutes but there were some inventive touches from Wilshere off the target man, Davies.
For a speck of a player physically, Wilshere lacks nothing in heart, flying into a tackle on Lampard, nicking the ball and then charging upfield only to be knocked over by Drogba. His night’s work also entailed attempting to close down John Obi Mikel whenever Chelsea’s anchorman sought to launch attacks from the deep.
Before Chelsea regained their composure, Bolton almost scored. When Lee, lively throughout, clipped a cross to the far post, Petr Cech fumbled, allowing Taylor a glimpse of goal until Paulo Ferreira slammed shut the window of opportunity. Back came Bolton again, Taylor’s shot diverted by Terry.
Chelsea’s captain was not the only one of Ancelotti’s defenders in the wars. Zhirkov took the full force of Davies’ forehead in the back of his head, sending blood spilling down his face. A bandage briefly staunched the flow, Zhirkov resembling the Butcher of the Bridge.
Bruised and bloodied, Chelsea showed their character, building towards goal. Drogba’s free-kick drew a strange response from Jaaskelainen, who punched the ball straight at Salomon Kalou’s head and was relieved as the ball rebounded wide.
Zhirkov then disappeared down the tunnel for stitches, requiring Terry, then Lampard, to slot in at left-back. Zhirkov stormed back on, minus the bandage, just a smear of Vaseline covering the wound, and charged upfield as if back on the wing during his formative years at Spartak Tambov.
Yet the best piece of wing-play came from Drogba a minute from the break, helping sweep Chelsea ahead. After a lengthy period of debate over whether Drogba and Anelka can play together, an understandable discussion point after Anelka’s prolific prominence during Drogba’s absence at the African Cup of Nations, the pair combined brilliantly.
Drogba’s cross was a gem, the ball struck to fade away from Jaaskelainen and onto the head of Anelka, who scored with ease. It was Anelka’s first goal since Jan 30 against Burnley and certainly injected some calm into home hearts. If Anelka’s goal delighted the Bridge, a cheer almost as loud erupted at half-time when Peter Bonetti was presented on the pitch, looking as sprightly as ever.
Coyle has instilled belief into Bolton and they kept worrying Terry’s defence. Davies imposed himself physically, and nastily when catching Mikel. Wilshere’s shimmering presence alarmed Chelsea. Lee was a constant outlet down the right.
Never giving up, Bolton screamed for a penalty when Lee’s cross appeared to be handled by Terry, although the linesman indicated that it had struck the defender’s chest and shoulder. A major call, and one could almost hear the growl of disapproval emanating from Cheshire.
Sensing the threat of a turning tide, Ancelotti sent on Malouda, Chelsea’s most impressive performer this season, although Anelka looked mildly perplexed by his removal. Joe Cole soon arrived but it was his England team-mate, Lampard, who almost scored the second, a low drive that hit the post.
Chelsea seemed invigorated, particularly with Cole scampering at Bolton’s defence, creating a chance that Michael Ballack, otherwise anonymous, headed straight at Jaaskelainen.
Terry then drove just wide before Coyle unleashed all his strikers, sending on Johan Elmander, who immediately headed a Taylor cross wide, and Ivan Klasnic, who shot wide. Chelsea should have ended any anxiety but the ball stuck under Cole’s feet with the goal at his mercy. No matter. However unconvincingly, Chelsea took another step towards the title.

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

Independent:

Anelka finds his touch to fire Blues
Chelsea 1 Bolton Wanderers 0
By Sam Wallace, Football Correspondent

It was almost five years ago at the Reebok Stadium that Chelsea's players climbed onto the roof of their team bus to celebrate the club's first league title in 50 years with their travelling support. They can only hope that last night's victory over Bolton Wanderers will prove similarly historic.
As has been the way under Carlo Ancelotti this season, Chelsea did it the hard way. They never definitively put Owen Coyle's team away, they survived two very promising penalty appeals from the away team and left their manager watching anxiously from the touchline with his hands plunged deep in his pockets counting away the seconds to the final whistle.
In the end Nicolas Anelka's first goal since 30 January was enough to win the game and Chelsea approach Saturday's meeting with Tottenham at White Hart Lane four points clear at the top of the Premier League. Sir Alex Ferguson's prophecy of an "easy" victory was not fulfilled but there was enough shakiness about Chelsea to suggest that this title race may yet have another twist in it.
There was a spectacular post-match rant from Coyle whose Glaswegian is so rapid that he should be fitted with a rewind button. The Bolton manager had a point about the handballs from Didier Drogba and John Terry in either half, both of which were turned down by referee Lee Probert, and his team did not embarrass themselves as Ferguson had predicted.
After Tottenham, Chelsea must negotiate Stoke City, Liverpool and Wigan if they are to deliver the fourth title in the club's history. When Jose Mourinho's double title-winning side revved up for the run-in there was a sense of inevitability about their progress. Ancelotti's team are much less predictable and consequently a lot more entertaining when it comes to seeing off the smaller clubs.
In his matchday programme notes, John Terry tried to conjure up some of the epic rhetoric that Mourinho liked to espouse at crucial stages of the season. Terry normally sticks to chronicling the training ground tomfoolery but yesterday he came over very serious. "When the opportunity arises, you have to seize it. When you seize it you can make history," Terry wrote. "Let's make history."
After the kind of season that Terry has had it would be fair to say that he has already made history himself – certainly no player has lost the England captaincy in such spectacular fashion. But he was talking about the possibility of a Premier League and FA Cup Double that has opened up for his team.
It was the sense that, despite their early Champions League elimination, Chelsea stand on the brink of an unprecedented achievement. It was a brave decision by Ancelotti to leave out Florent Malouda, but by the end he had the winger on the pitch in search of the elusive second goal.
Coyle picked a Bolton team that was not entirely defensive, selecting the Arsenal loan signing Jack Wilshere in the hole behind the main striker Kevin Davies. It was a brave way to go and the fairytale scenario that Wilshere had surely envisaged – scoring the goal that thrust Arsenal back into the title race box seat – never materialised.
Wilshere is a fascinating prospect, although he got so exasperated so often when the ball was not delivered direct to his feet that it made you wonder if he read the brochure before agreeing to join Bolton. Nevertheless, he did sell Drogba a delicious dummy that drew a clumsy foul from the Chelsea striker.
There was a first-half scare for Chelsea when Terry twisted his right ankle blocking a shot from Matt Taylor. For a few minutes it looked as if Terry, who could barely put any weight on his right foot, would find it impossible to play on but, for all his faults, the Chelsea captain does have a remarkable ability to shrug off the discomfort and carry on.
Yuri Zhirkov also clashed with Davies in a challenge that left a deep cut in the back of the Russian's head and blood everywhere. Patched up like a survivor from The Battleship Potemkin he was eventually ordered off by the referee Probert to get some treatment to stop him bleeding. He returned with four stitches in his head in time to play a part in Chelsea's goal.
Two minutes before the break, Zhirkov scurried after the ball and retrieved it in front of the Bolton area. He found Drogba on the left who struck a beautiful outswinging cross that Anelka headed past Jussi Jaaskelainen from close range. It was his 13th goal of the season – his previous one was 13 games ago.
In the first half, Drogba had appeared to punch Taylor's free-kick away as Davies went to head the ball. Terry's crafty block of Chung-yong Lee's cross looked equally blatant. Nevertheless, Bolton launched an impressive late onslaught. The substitute Johan Elmander should have done better with a back-post header from Taylor's cross that he steered just a few yards wide.
In injury-time the substitute Joe Cole got another inviting Zhirkov cross stuck under his feet when all he needed to do was tap it in for Chelsea's second goal. It was not quite what he would have wanted in front of the watching England manager Fabio Capello. It did not do Ancelotti's nerves any good either and you suspect he may have a few more experiences like this before 9 May.

Chelsea (4-1-3-2): Cech; Ferreira, Alex, Terry, Zhirkov; Mikel; Kalou (J Cole, 67), Ballack, Lampard; Anelka (Malouda, 67), Drogba. Substitutes not used: Hilario (gk), Deco, Sturridge, Bruma Van Aanholt.

Bolton (4-4-1-1): Jaaskelainen; Steinsson, Cahill, Knight, Robinson; Chung-Yong (Klasnic, 82), Muamba, Ricketts, Taylor; Wilshere (Elmander, 82); K Davies. Substitutes not used: Al Habsi (gk), Samuel, Elmander, M Davies, Klasnic, Cohen, Weiss.

Referee: L Probert (Wiltshire).
Booked: Chelsea Alex; Bolton Steinsson, Robinson, Davies, Elmander.
Man of the match: Zhirkov.
Attendance: 40,531.

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

Guardian:

Nicolas Anelka strikes as Chelsea beat Bolton and extend lead at summit
Chelsea 1-0 Bolton Wanderers

Dominic Fifield at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea always believed they boasted the quality to regain their title. Now they might be convinced fortune is with them as well. A stubborn Bolton side were squeezed out here but the victory that has opened up Chelsea's four-point advantage at the top of the table was gleaned only amid the visitors' livid protestations as penalty appeals were turned down.
The officials' failure to award spot-kicks for handballs by Didier Drogba and John Terry, one in each half, provoked Owen Coyle to confront the referee, Lee Probert, as he left the pitch on the final whistle to seek an explanation for the oversights. Sir Alex Ferguson may share his compatriot's frustration. "I know Drogba is a world-class player but he could play world-class volleyball for anybody on that evidence," said the Bolton manager. "And if it hit Terry on his shoulder then, in that case, he must have a shoulder that stretches down to his ankles."
Given the controversy, Carlo Ancelotti's assertion that "the Premier League is now in our hands" felt oddly appropriate. Probert had been officiating only because the original appointment, Chris Foy, has been selected for next month's FA Cup final involving Chelsea. The Gloucestershire referee might have benefited from more accurate guidance from his assistants here, none of the officials having spotted Drogba paw away Matt Taylor's quickly taken free-kick as he leapt to challenge Kevin Davies.
Coyle was still smouldering from that oversight when Terry appeared to knock down Chung-Yong Lee's cross just after the hour mark with his left arm, the ball falling kindly for Petr Cech and the linesman immediately waving away Bolton's appeals to indicate it had struck the defender on the shoulder. "We didn't need any luck tonight," said Coyle. "We only needed the officials to get the big decisions right. I can accept it if they've not seen it if they're out of position but, for the second one, he says it's hit Terry's shoulder. That's not happened, so that's a poor decision.
"I can't recall any favourable decisions going our way since I came to Bolton. I can recall a few that have gone against us. It's hard to take, but there you are. Chelsea are big favourites now and, if they keep getting decisions like that going their way, then Carlo will be rubbing his hands." Drogba's might still be stinging this morning, though any vague sense of guilt will have long since subsided.
Chelsea can sense the title is within reach now. A further 10 points from their final four games, starting at Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, will be enough to secure them their first league title since 2006. If this never threatened to be a swashbuckling dismissal of a relegation-threatened side, it still drew upon Chelsea's reserves of patience and resilience. Where their rhythm was never entirely upbeat, they remained relentless and the game's most jaw-dropping flash of quality ultimately proved sufficient to secure a fifth consecutive victory in all competitions.
The first period had apparently been drifting to a scoreless conclusion, Chelsea comfortable in possession as Bolton retreated, when the visitors' concentration lapsed. Yuri Zhirkov, left bloodied in a gruesome clash of heads with Davies early on, had just returned from having four stitches inserted into the gaping head wound – the bandaging having proved utterly insufficient to stem the bleeding – to drift in-field with the ball. Lee was dragged after him, opening up space for Drogba on the flank to collect and dispatch a glorious cross into the six-yard box. Nicolas Anelka could not miss.
How the former Bolton forward had been craving a chance so simple. His last goal came against Burnley at Turf Moor back in January, the 13-game barren run since having anchored the forward's confidence. "He and Didier worked very hard and their goal was fantastic, great movement from Didier on the left and Nicolas was ready in the box," said Ancelotti. "It was a tough game because we didn't have a lot of possibilities to play as we want but it was a good time for Nicolas to score."
The Chelsea manager pointed to the number of chances his team had generated as evidence that the victory was merited, even if few were clear-cut. Salomon Kalou should have converted from Drogba's precise through-ball between Paul Robinson and Gary Cahill, and Frank Lampard fizzed a low attempt on to a post late on, but anxiety had gripped long before the end. Had Johan Elmander been more accurate with a header from a looped Taylor centre then Coyle might not have departed quite so furious with the officials.
"The Premier League is in our hands and we have to stay focused and calm, play game by game," added Ancelotti. "We are excited to see where we are at the moment but we know that we will have to fight again." This win was born of grit and good fortune. Chelsea's luck may just be in.

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

Mail:
Chelsea 1 Bolton 0: Anelka on target against former club as Blues go four points clear at top
By Matt Barlow

Not quite as easy as Sir Alex Ferguson had tried to make out - not by a long way. But Carlo Ancelotti was able to arch an eyebrow in quiet satisfaction as he inched closer to the title in his first season.
Nicolas Anelka scored the only goal as Ancelotti survived his first mind games with Sir Alex and moved clear at the top.Ten more points will secure the title, fewer if Arsenal slip at Tottenham on Wednesday night.
Excitement bubbles at Stamford Bridge but this was far from routine. There were scares, notably two penalty appeals for handball, 'stonewallers' in the eyes of Owen Coyle.
The first was against Didier Drogba and then a more obvious one against John Terry which prompted Coyle and his coaching team to leap from the bench in unison.
Referee Lee Probert, a late replacement for Chris Foy - selected for the FA Cup final and unable to take charge of Chelsea or Portsmouth games before next month's Wembley date - remained unmoved.
There was defensive panic, a header missed by Johan Elmander after he eluded Terry and a sliced clearance by Didier Drogba which allowed Ivan Klasnic a late chance which he dragged wide.
There were cuts and bruises, generally distributed by ramrod striker Kevin Davies, who cut Yuri Zhirkov in a clash of heads and left John Mikel Obi in such apparent agony on the halfway line that it was a miracle he sprang to his feet to play on.
When Joe Cole picked up the ball on the right, three minutes into added time, Ancelotti was pointing him furiously towards the corner flag. Forget entertainment, waste time and win. When Cole jinked inside, looking to thread a pass to Florent Malouda, and lost possession, the manager threw up his arms in exasperation.
They may not be the slick machine they were when they last won the title four years ago but Chelsea's veterans are battle-hardened and they retain enough of their old resilience and desire for a domestic arm-wrestle like this.
Bolton boss Coyle had done his homework. Fabrice Muamba and Sam Ricketts were deployed as midfield markers, sticking tight to Frank Lampard and Michael Ballack respectively in an effort to choke Chelsea and allow Jack Wilshere to push forward in support of lone striker Davies.
For 44 minutes, the plan went well. Chelsea were limited going forward to a couple of Drogba free-kicks, one of which was parried by Jussi Jaaskelainen straight on to the head of Salomon Kalou and then looped just wide.
At the back, the home team were forced to defend bravely. Petr Cech fumbled a low cross from Chung-Yong Lee under pressure from Matt Taylor but dived among the boots to smother it. Zhirkov needed treatment for a nasty cut after a clash of heads with Davies.
The Russian was bandaged and sent back on but the bleeding did not stop and he needed more treatment before half-time, which saw Lampard fill in as an emergency full back.
Strangely, the blow had a positive effect on Zhirkov, who came back out with his head stitched to play a key role in Anelka's goal, which eased the nerves around Stamford Bridge just before the interval.
Having spent most of the season looking like an £18million waste of money, the man dubbed the 'Russian Ronaldinho' in his homeland, produced an outstanding performance at left back.
Anxiety was rippling around the stadium when Zhirkov charged up the flank and cut inside. He stopped, turned and rolled a pass to Drogba on the left. Drogba delivered a wonderful cross with his left foot, which was headed in from close range by Anelka, pulling away from defenders Zat Knight and Gretar Steinsson.
It was his first since January and his first since Drogba returned to the team after the Africa Cup of Nations. It went some way towards answering questions about whether the two strikers can prosper in the same team.
Chelsea went after a second. Kalou was put clean through by Drogba but was denied by Jaaskelainen's legs and another Kalou effort drifted over moments later. Lampard lashed a 20-yarder into the foot of a post and Terry fired a volley narrowly wide.
Joe Cole came on to set up Ballack for a header which he planted straight at the goalkeeper. Then Cole missed a sitter at the death.
Just as Stamford Bridge started to relax and songs about winning the title were contemplated, Chelsea became tense but Bolton could not find the net.
Defeat leaves Coyle with work to do before he can look back on a successful escape from relegation. As for the Blues, they could reflect on a victory against Bolton buoyed by superstition.
A win at the Reebok clinched their first Premier League title in 2005 and victory at the same venue the following season propelled them into a nine-point lead at the top as they defended their trophy.

MATCH FACTS

CHELSEA (4-3-3): Cech 6; Ferreira 6, Alex 7, Terry 7, Zhirkov 8; Ballack 5, Mikel 6, Lampard 6; Kalou 5 (J Cole 77min), Drogba 7, Anelka 7 (Malouda 67, 6).Booked: Alex.

BOLTON WANDERERS (4-4-1-1): Jaaskelainen 6; Steinsson 5, Cahill 5, Knight 6, Robinson 5; Lee 6 (Klasnic 82), Muamba 7, Ricketts 6, Taylor 6; Wilshere 7 (Elmander 82); K Davies 6.

Booked: Steinsson, Robinson, Davies, Elmander.
Man of the match: Yuri Zhirkov.Referee: Lee Probert.
----------------------------------------------------------------

Sun:

Chelsea 1 Bolton 0
From SHAUN CUSTIS at Stamford Bridge

NOT so easy after all - in fact decidedly twitchy.
Squeaky bums were everywhere at Stamford Bridge last night as Chelsea did just enough to take a stranglehold on the title race.
At this stage it's the points not the performance that matter and ex-Bolton striker Nicolas Anelka's close-range header proved the difference.
But the Blues survived strong penalty claims for handball against Didier Drogba and skipper John Terry and sub Johan Elmander's late header, which flew just past the post.
Bolton boss Owen Coyle was furious at the end complaining at the incompetence of the officials.
And Chelsea, now four points clear of Manchester United at the top, were well aware they had got the breaks at a crucial stage.
Boss Carlo Ancelotti admitted he intended to rest players and relegated Joe Cole, Deco and the in-form Florent Malouda to the bench.
United rival Alex Ferguson provoked the desired response from Bolton after claiming this was an "easy game" for Chelsea. And he must have been cursing that his attempted mind games didn't quite come off.
Fergie's comments riled Coyle's men and though they did not create too much they were strong and determined in a defence well-marshalled by Gary Cahill, who has hopes of making a last-gasp bid for England's World Cup squad.
Bolton have work to do to avoid relegation but on this showing they should survive with games to spare.
Perhaps skipper Kevin Davies will reflect it wasn't the best idea to suggest Drogba and Anelka could not play in the same side.
Davies was once Anelka's strike partner and said before the game: "I'm not sure they get on very well. There doesn't seem a great bond when they play together."
Well they certainly got on OK two minutes before the break.
Yuri Zhirkov had just returned to the pitch having been off to have four stitches in a head wound following a clash with Davies when he collected the ball and fed Drogba who had pulled away to the left.
The Ivory Coast ace's cross was an absolute peach curving away from keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen and Anelka read it perfectly to head home.
It was the Frenchman's first goal since January 30 at Burnley and a huge relief for a Chelsea team who toiled away throughout.
The closest they had come up to that point was when Drogba's free-kick was punched out by Jaaskelainen, hit Salomon Kalou and rebounded past the post.
And they survived Drogba's sneaky handball which prevented a cross reaching Davies.
Kalou was not having a good night. He was one-on-one with Jaaskelainen on 54 minutes but his shot was too close to the Finnish keeper.
That failure to bag a second could have cost them dear had ref Lee Probert not been in such a generous mood again when Chung-Yong Lee's cross clearly hit Terry's left arm.
The Bolton bench, led by boss Coyle, were on their feet screaming for a penalty but the linesman, who had a good view, was pointing to his shoulder. An eye-test is in order for that particular official.
Bolton would have been doubly cheesed off had Zhirkov's strike a minute later gone in rather than being well saved by Jaaskelainen.
The keeper was also alert to deny Kalou again and was grateful to see Frank Lampard's strike hit the inside of the post and bounce away to safety.
Chelsea poured forward in the last 10 minutes with sub Cole - looking to impress watching England boss Fabio Capello - behind much of their good work.
But a second goal would not come. Michael Ballack headed at Jaaskelainen from Cole's cross and Terry's effort from a corner was deflected inches wide.
It was heart-in-the-mouth time as Elmander's header flashed past the post with Petr Cech beaten. Then another Bolton sub, Ivan Klasnic, shot across goal.
Cole had the chance to finish it off but trod on Zhirkov's cross - which certainly would not have impressed Capello.
It was that sort of evening. Not very pretty, not very entertaining, but very rewarding for the home side.
The finishing line is in sight. A couple more cracks of the whip should do it.

aston villa 3-0

Observer:

Chelsea see off Aston Villa again to seal another FA Cup final place
FA Cup Semi-Final
Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 3 Drogba 67, Malouda 89, Lampard 90
Jamie Jackson at Wembley

Chelsea are still on course for a first Double. An often soporific FA Cup semi-final ended with Carlo Ancelotti's team setting up a date with Spurs or Portsmouth, who clash here tomorrow, in May's showpiece. By then this team will hope to have bagged the Premier League title, and be halfway to immortality in their west London manor.
Didier Drogba was preferred ahead of Nicolas Anelka, after the Ivory Coast striker had started on the bench for last week's 2-1 victory at Manchester United. Drogba, surely nonplussed by that decision, had entered proceedings at Old Trafford as a second-half substitute and scored Chelsea's winner.
This afternoon was much the same. "The FA Cup is really special to us and when I have the chance I will try to score," the 32-year-old said of a second-half strike, which took his Wembley tally to five, including one against Arsenal in the corresponding fixture last season, plus the winner against United in the 2007 final.
"I had two chances before and I was a bit unlucky, the first one was a great block from [Stephen] Warnock and the third chance maybe was the one that was least expected, but that's the goal.
"I always say I'm lucky; it's an honour for me to be here and to play in a stadium like this one."
Fortune arrives for those who go searching, and it was Drogba alone who created the opportunity from which he claimed the 32nd goal of an outstanding season, flashing down the left and causing James Collins to dive in, before his shot at Brad Friedel went for a corner.
It was the turn now of Collins's defensive partner, Richard Dunne, to commit a howler. Florent Malouda's delivery from the left landed plum on the Irishman's head, but his weak clearance found a lurking John Terry. The former England captain's response was a pass-shot hybrid, which found the unmarked Drogba. From six yards he was not going to miss and he duly steered a left-foot strike low into the corner of the net.
Before the goal that killed Villa, though, it had been Martin O'Neill's team who started the tie far more convincingly. Gabriel Agbonlahor had begun festivities with a surge through midfield that worried Terry before the ball fell to Ashley Young who forced a corner.
Chelsea managed their opening threat on nine minutes. But, after a corner was won courtesy of Malouda's work down the left Alex could only head the ball out for a goal-kick.
Villa's 7-1 drubbing at Stamford Bridge a fortnight ago had begun with a Frank Lampard strike on 15 minutes so they were content to move beyond that mark still level here. In fact, before the quarter-hour had passed, it was O'Neill's team who might have taken the lead from two chances.
James Milner was first up with a low, skidding effort that narrowly passed Petr Cech's right post. Then Agbonlahor appeared to be kneed to the turf inside Chelsea's area by Mikel John Obi. Howard Webb stared for a moment before, to O'Neill's fury, turning away.
If the referee had seen Agbonlahor clutching Mikel's jersey then he might have taken that in mitigation, though a counter-argument says that players hugging each other in this area of the pitch is commonplace stuff.
Since that 7-1 defeat much has been made by O'Neill and his players of Terry's remarks that Villa tend to fade late on in games. From a distance, though, this seemed fair comment from Chelsea's captain and there was a sense here that Wembley's wide yards would again test Villa's stamina.
Yet as the half-hour passed it was Chelsea who, if not sluggish exactly, were struggling to wrest the play from Villa, though this may have been the unfolding of precisely the pattern Terry had described, with Chelsea hoping to emerge stronger as the game wore on.
The closing minutes of the first half offered an initial hint of this. Not for the first time, Drogba was Chelsea's threat. With players beginning to slip on the notorious Wembley turf (this was the second try-out of a 10th relaying in three years) Dunne went down in his area when hoping to stop the striker unloading from Malouda's cross.
It was Warnock who managed to get a fine block in and moments later Drogba performed a flip-and-collect over a Villa player's head that was playground stuff. And, when Dunne had a niggle at the same player, it was Drogba's toe-poke of a free-kick that was blasted at Villa's wall.
Despite the strong finish to the period, though, Ancelotti was not content with how his players had, for large periods, been dominated by Villa. This caused the Italian to show his displeasure by sending his players out early for the restart and telling three substitutes – Anelka, Michael Ballack and Salomon Kalou – to spend the first 10 minutes warming up.
Yet they and the manager had to witness further spluttering from Chelsea, with the aimless ball from Joe Cole that went straight for a goal-kick instead of on to Drogba's head emblematic of their performance. At this point Villa still seemed favourites. After 62 minutes another Agbonlahor run preceded a shot that demanded a Cech save. Ancelotti, wanting to force events, had seen enough. Off went Cole and on came Kalou.
Now came Drogba's moment and while Terry later seemed fortunate to receive only a yellow card for clobbering Milner's knee, Mr Chelsea's analysis of Villa's tendency to fade was proved correct. Late strikes from Malouda, meeting a precise Ballack cross on the half-volley, and Lampard, teed up in the area by Malouda and Anelka, provided the confirmation.
Terry's team now switch back to the league and Bolton on Tuesday. They can smell glory.

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

Independent:

Drogba turns tide as Villa are forced to pay penalty again
Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 3: Second-half flourish keeps Chelsea on track for the Double
By Steve Tongue at Wembley

For the second time in a fortnight Chelsea defeated Aston Villa by a margin that hardly reflected the balance of play. Two weeks ago it was a flurry of late goals that brought about Villa's biggest ever Premier League defeat by 7-1. This time there were two in the last few minutes by Florent Malouda and Frank Lampard to distort the scoreline after Didier Drogba's 32nd goal of the season had put the holders in front with three-quarters of the game played.
Before that Villa, 20 points behind in the League table, showed no sign of inferiority or psychological damage and were the better side early on, when they were harshly denied a penalty. But overall they did not create enough scoring chances and were unable to gainsay John Terry's suggestion that they tend to fade late on.
Martin O'Neill must now attempt to ensure that the same does not apply to their season as a whole again – they play Everton on Wednesday – while Chelsea, through to their third final in four years, retain hopes of a first League and Cup double.
Whether or not they return to Wembley on 15 May as champions, they will have to hope against hope that the pitch has improved. Despite having been relaid for the 10th time, it was as poor as ever yesterday, which undoubtedly contributed to the disappointing nature of the football without entirely excusing it.
Carlo Ancelotti, who stands to emulate Arsène Wenger and Kenny Dalglish by doing the Double in his first full season, was gracious enough to admit: "In the first half we played without intensity and were lucky to be nil-nil. But the second half was totally different."
O'Neill was naturally in greater agreement with the former sentiment than the latter, once he got round to discussing the game as a whole rather than his fury at Howard Webb's penalty decision and Terry's tackle on James Milner. "I was very, very proud of the team," he said. "We suffered a heavy defeat by the same side and came here determined to win. Up until the first goal there was nothing in it. I told them at half-time they'd been absolutely brilliant."
There was an element of hyperbole to that assessment, but it was certainly the case that his team had more than matched the favourites. Entitled to regard the result a fortnight ago as something of a freak, O'Neill fielded nine of the same players, bringing back Stewart Downing for the more conservative Steve Sidwell to work the flanks with Ashley Young on the big Wembley pitch.
It risked offering Chelsea's tight midfield trio the opportunity to run the show – all the more so as Joe Cole and Malouda were more inclined to drift in off their touchline – but neither Lampard, scorer of four goals in the recent romp, nor Deco was able to take a grip during a dull first half.
Villa were convinced with some justification that Webb should have awarded a penalty 15 minutes in when Gabriel Agbonlahor, trying to turn past John Obi Mikel, went down. There was contact between them and Agbonlahor beat the turf in frustration as England's World Cup referee waved play on, O'Neill performing a furious dance in the technical area.
Their team had been closest to getting a goal up to that point as well, Milner taking a square pass from his central midfield partner, Stiliyan Petrov, and driving it a fraction wide of Petr Cech's post.
Early in the second half John Carew's deft back-header from a corner without leaving the ground passed close to the far post, but apart from one other shot by Young, Cech was never threatened again. Chelsea, in contrast, were slowly building up a head of steam.
As Malouda cut the ball back for Drogba shortly before the interval, the opening goal seemed certain, but Stephen Warnock, one of nine England contenders being scrutinised from the stands by Fabio Capello, threw himself into a superb block.
Ancelotti blinked first in the technical areas, sending on Salomon Kalou for Cole, and within two minutes his team were in front. Not that the two events were connected. It was Mikel who brought the ball forward to send Drogba away for a bold incursion into Villa's penalty area, easily slipping James Collins' rash challenge only to be foiled by Richard Dunne's block for a corner.
From saviour, Dunne immediately became villain, sending a weak header from the corner straight to Terry, whose miscued left-footed shot was turned into the net by Drogba. Big Fella Thanks, as the Blues' racing fans might have put it.
Michael Ballack replaced Deco, who could easily have received a second yellow card for fouling Petrov again, in the same move as the referee's mind was on taking Terry's name for a dreadful tackle on Milner. If Capello winced at that, he had another player to observe as Emile Heskey came on for the limping Carew – to no great effect.
A more reliable Englishman, Lampard, then began the counter-attack that brought the second goal, before scoring the third. First he spread the play to Ballack down the right for a fine cross met by a confident finisher in Malouda, then took a pass from substitute Nicolas Anelka to rub it in for Villa. A deserved win, by a flattering margin.

Attendance: 85,472
Referee: Howard Webb
Man of the match: Malouda
Match rating: 6/10

MAN FOR MAN MARKING

Aston Villa
BRAD FRIEDEL 6/10
There was not much Friedel could do about Chelsea's three goals, and other than that he had very little to do as Villa's defence kept the top flight's top-scoring team at arm's length. The American made a comfortable save from Cole's volley after 39 minutes.
CARLOS CUELLAR 7/10
The Spaniard was simply excellent at right-back, where he faced the in-form Malouda. He gave his opponent little space and produced a perfect tackle on the Frenchman in the 20th minute to deny Chelsea. He also pushed forward and supported the Villa attack.
JAMES COLLINS 7/10
The defender did little wrong and along with Dunne he kept Drogba out of the game except for the decisive moment when the Ivorian scored. Collins was a threat every time he came forward for free-kicks and corners. A disconsolate figure at the final whistle.
RICHARD DUNNE 7/10
The Irish defender passed a late fitness test on an Achilles injury to take his place in the team, with the job of keeping Drogba quiet, a job he performed with tenacity and wonderful concentration. Dunne marred his otherwise fine game with a poor header that led to Drogba's goal.
STEPHEN WARNOCK 6/10
He never stopped working down the Villa left. Warnock threw himself bravely at the ball to block Drogba's shot with his knee after 36 minutes. After all that, and in front of Fabio Capello, he almost undid it all with a terrible header moments later that allowed Cole to fire in a volley.
STUART DOWNING 6/10
The England hopeful spent most of the game on the right flank, but seemed far happier in those moments he swapped with Young and played on the left. A cross from Downing from the left almost led to a goal, but for Terry's saving header.
STILIYAN PETROV 6/10
The captain was tidy in the Villa midfield rather than spectacular. He led the team by example, doing the donkey work in front of the back four to ensure Lampard could not repeat his four-goal performance of two weeks ago.
JAMES MILNER 8/10
Comfortably won his personal duel with Cole to impress the watching England manager. Milner changed his boots after 12 minutes after he found it impossible to keep his feet on Wembley's relaid turf. He was a constant menace in the centre of midfield and was just wide with a low effort from 30 yards.
ASHLEY YOUNG 7/10
The winger began well and troubled both the Chelsea fullbacks but faded in the second half. Twice his crosses caused panic in the Chelsea defence but the Premier League leaders managed to recover. At times his delivery fails to live up to what has come before it.
JOHN CAREW 6/10
The Norwegian target-man won his share of balls in the air but could not make his presence felt in front of goal. His only chance came just after the interval, but his close-range header flew past the far post, and with it went Villa's FA Cup hopes.
GABRIEL AGBONLAHOR 8/10
The brightest attacker for Villa but, like his team-mates, he began to fade in the second half after an encouraging opening. Agbonlahor tested both John Terry and Alex early on in the game with a determined run, and should have had a penalty after he was upended by Mikel. Great tracking back and pressing.
Substitutes
Emile Heskey for Carew (82 minutes) Made no impression on the Chelsea defence, who by this time were on their way to another victory.

Chelsea
PETR CECH 7/10
Misread the flight of Downing's cross in the 32nd minute and totally missed his punch. Cech also looked uncomfortable with Young's cross on the hour, punching it past his near post for a corner. Had very little to do in the second half as Villa's legs went – again.
PAULO FERREIRA 6/10
This was probably the Portuguese veteran's last game of the season now Branislav Ivanovic is fit again, and he did little to convince Ancelotti to keep him in the side. He did hit a wonderful volleyed pass to Lampard early in the second half.
ALEX 6/10
The big, lumbering Brazilian looked vulnerable when Villa kept the ball on the grass, but was far more comfortable when he was tested in the air, even against the towering Carew. Never had the chance to unleash one of his trademark free-kicks.
JOHN TERRY 7/10
Not his finest hour at Wembley, although he did create Drogba's goal, albeit with a shot that was going wide. Terry pulled off a brilliant glancing header just enough to deny Carew in the 32nd minute. Booked in the 75th minute for a horrible foul on Milner.
YURI ZHIRKOV 6/10
The Russian got up and down the left flank well in support of Malouda, but he was too casual in possession. The £18m defender did show what he is capable of with one brilliant pass to Drogba. Did enough to keep Villa's wingers in check, just about.
JOHN OBI MIKEL 6/10
What Chelsea wouldn't give for Claude Makelele right now. Mikel is too ponderous and unreliable. The Nigerian was in luck that referee Howard Webb was the only man in Wembley not to think his clumsy challenge on Agbonlahor in the 16th minute was not a penalty.
DECO 6/10
The Portuguese has become a regular in the Chelsea midfield again but this was his worst game in recent weeks. Had a sight of goal in the 50th minute but lashed his shot from a corner well wide of the Villa goal. He is a terrible tackler, and was booked for a ill-timed hack at Petrov's legs.
FRANK LAMPARD 7/10
Chelsea's inspiration at the heart of the midfield, Lampard was always available for the ball and seldom misplaced a pass. His patient approach was key to Chelsea finally grinding down the Villa resistance. Earned his reward with a stoppage-time goal.
JOE COLE 6/10
Another inconsistent performance. The England midfielder occupied his customary role on the right of attack but looks happier when is on the left and can cut in and shoot with his favoured right foot. He did just that in the 11th minute but could only find the side-netting.
DIDIER DROGBA 7/10
Decided the match with his poacher's goal in the 67th minute when he instinctively turned in Terry's shot after a corner. However it was not a vintage performance from the Ivorian, who found himself unable to get much change out of Dunne and Collins.
FLORENT MALOUDA 7/10
Malouda struggled with the relaid pitch more than most. Kept his feet to finish wonderfully from Ballack's cross in the 88th minute.
Substitutes
Salomon Kalou for Cole (65 minutes) Injected energy to the Chelsea attack, and went close with an attempted curler from 25 yards that was deflected wide. Michael Ballack for Deco (76) Wonderful cross to the far post for Malouda to score Chelsea's second. Nicolas Anelka for Drogba (80) Unselfishly set up Lampard for Chelsea's third goal in stoppage time.

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Telegraph:

Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 3
By Duncan White at Wembley

There is something about Didier Drogba in this competition at this venue. He scored in the semi-final and the final last year and he did it again, his instinctive finish the goal that effectively sent holders Chelsea into the final.
With Aston Villa chasing the game, Chelsea added two late goals to skew the scoreline in what was actually quite a tight, hard-fought game.
This was not Chelsea at their best. They lacked the energy that has been fundamental to their impressive run of results since being eliminated from the Champions League, but their foundations remain rock solid.
The defensive keystone of Alex, John Terry and Petr Cech is the source of the whole team’s strength and Villa could not breach them. Terry, one ugly studs-up challenge on James Milner aside, was particularly impressive.
It was a second Wembley disappoint for Martin O’Neill and his Villa side this season.
After suffering a 7-1 thrashing at Stamford Bridge two weeks ago, some Villa fans might have feared their team would get outclassed but if anything they shaded much of this game - they just did not get the breaks and the late capitulation made it look worse than it was.
Just as in their last appearance at Wembley, Villa were the victims of an early injustice. In the Carling Cup final, Manchester United's Nemanja Vidic somehow escaped being sent off after bringing down Gabby Agbonlahor in the penalty area when he was clean through. This time, with 16 minutes played, Agbonlahor rolled John Obi Mikel in the area and was clumsily brought down by the Chelsea midfielder.
Howard Webb was well positioned but didn’t give it. Agbonlahor flapped around on the turf like a dying seal; O’Neill had a tantrum in the technical area.
Ancelotti had frustrations of his own, though. The way his side were set out - with Drogba on his own up front and the full-backs taking an attacking line in possession - meant that Chelsea always had one of their central midfield trio spare.
Despite this advantage, though, they failed to start with the tempo that had made them so formidable against Manchester United last week, or even in that 7-1 demolition of Villa a fortnight ago.
Chelsea’s difficulties were exacerbated by the fact that Drogba, recalled to the side after scoring as a sub at Old Trafford, was struggling to impose himself.
Villa’s tactic was to try to bully him. After James Collins went in hard to an aerial challenge, Drogba seemed to hurt his knee and moved gingerly for the ensuing minutes. Richard Dunne fouled him twice as the belligerent approach was sustained and when he did get a chance, after Florent Malouda found him with a cross, Stephen Warnock was across well to block.
With the ball, Villa tried to use the pace of Ashley Young, Stewart Downing and especially Agbonlahor to hit Chelsea early, with the latter two swapping wings frequently to keep the Chelsea full backs guessing.
Chances came: James Milner watched a low shot from range go just wide of the post with Petr Cech at full stretch, while Terry got the slightest touch on Stewart Downing’s cross to confuse a spare John Carew at the far post.
Still, it was a pretty flat first half and, once again, this Wembley pitch was not helping matters. The surface layer was cutting up very easily and players were slipping all over the place - Milner even changed his boots during the course of the first half.
At half-time 13 ground staff came out with pitchforks to repair some of the damage. It’s preposterous that it remains in such a state and a dumb risk to the fitness of the players hoping to go to the World Cup.
The intensity increased in the second half as the roles were reversed: Villa started to enjoy more possession with Chelsea striking on the counter-attack. It was one of those swift attacks that preceded the goal. Mikel slid Drogba in down the left channel and Ivorian cut inside the sprawling Collins as he tried to block. Dunne came flying in to cover but conceded a corner.
Malouda sent in what looked a benign cross but Dunne could only head the ball straight to the feet of Terry and the Chelsea captain’s mishit shot was diverted in instinctively by Drogba. This was far from one of his best performances but Drogba obviously loves this stadium.
With the game slipping away from them Villa had to take risks and Chelsea punished them for their adventure. Michael Ballack, on for Deco, sent in a classy cross to the far post where the in-form Malouda tucked it in right-footed for the second.
Malouda then missed an easier chance in stoppage time before Lampard, who had scored four against Villa last time, tucked away a third with the defence in disarray.

Aston Villa
Brad FriedelNot required to do much in the first half, although he reacted well Cole snap shot. Pity he didn’t move so fast when Drogba struck. No chance for the second. 5
Carlos CuellarAn early slip allowed Cole to shoot, which went just wide. Muscled off the ball by Malouda, and was out of position for second goal. 4
Richard DunneA reassuring presence in the centre of defence for much of the match, but it was his poor defensive header from a corner that led to Drogba’s goal. 6
James CollinsSolid, and always willing to throw himself into a challenge. Failed to shut out Drogba, leading to the corner from which Chelsea scored. 7
Stephen WarnockStandout Villa performer. Bloody-minded defending, using body to block Drogba’s goal-bound shot, but poor header gave Cole a sniff. 7
Ashley YoungPromising runs, but he failed to deliver from decent crossing positions. Missed a chance to prove that he has the big match temperament. 6
James MilnerUnquestionable commitment as usual. Good long range effort on the quarter-hour mark. Doing his bit in defence too, stopping Cole. 6
Stilian PetrovSlammed the door closed on a number of Chelsea breaks, but failed to produce any penetrative passes through the middle for the front men. 6
Stewart DowningQuiet until a delightful chip drew Cech out and forced Terry into a goal-saving header. It put a spring in the winger’s step. 7
John CarewKept honest by Mikel. His aerial presence always a threat, and he escaped from Terry early in the second half, but failed to get header on target. 6
Gabriel AgbonlahorEarly energy provoked Mikel into clumsy challenge, for which he should have been rewarded with penalty. 7
SubstitutesHeskey for Carew 7Not used: Guzan, L Young, Sidwell, Delfouneso, Delph, Beye
Martin O'NeillWill feel aggrieved he was not given a penalty, but persisted with Cuellar and only gave Heskey ten minutes to make an impact – never enough. 6

Chelsea
Petr CechExposed badly by a high Downing cross, leaving the goal open and at Carew’s mercy. Has Terry to thank for bailing him out with a last-minute header. 5
Paulo FerreiraWas perhaps a little fortunate that Young and Downing, who were given time and space to cross on a number of occasions, were not more accurate. 5
AlexReasonable, but caught in possession in dangerous position by Milner. Could be accused of trying to take too much time on the ball. Confident in air. 5
John TerrySolid. Crucial header in 32nd minute prevented Carew from an open goal, and set up Drogba’s goal Cautioned for a horrible tackle on Milner. 7
Yuri ZhirkovDealt with interchange between Young and Downing. Outpaced, but timed his challenges well, and marginalised the threat from his flank nicely. 6
DecoSetting the pace from deep midfield, but didn’t provide anything exceptional. Struggled at times with the pace, and was cautioned for a cheeky trip on Petrov. 6
John-Obi MikelMatching Carew for height and strength, but very fortunate not to have conceded an early penalty by bringing Agbonlahor down with a clumsy outstretched knee. 6
Frank LampardVery subdued in the first half, but came to the party after the resumption. Tidy distribution, and rounded off the afternoon with a composed finish. 7
Joe ColeLively. Given free rein to try his luck and probe different areas of the defence, he looked the likeliest of Chelsea’s forward men until his substitution. 7
Florent MaloudaExcellent vision, picked out Drogba in the first half with acres of space. Caused Cuellar problems, and finished superbly. 7
Didier DrogbaDramatic as usual, and rarely seen not nursing a body part. Unimpressive for the most part, and looked like coming off before tapping in Terry’s shot. 7
Substitutes
Ballack for Deco 7, Kalou for Cole, 7, Anelka for Drogba 7.Not used: Hilario, Ivanovic,Sturridge, Belletti.
Carlo AncelottiSpent the majority of time with arms crossed or with hands in pockets, a statue in comparison to his counterpart. Made positive substitutions. 7

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Sunday Times

Didier Drogba leads Chelsea to another FA Cup final
Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 3
Jonathan Northcroft

A footballer with such a grand and exuberant carriage is made for arenas like this. The new Wembley, with its mighty scale and flamboyant arch, obviously strikes chords deep within Didier Drogba. Once again, the striker was talismanic in a Chelsea triumph at the national stadium.
Since Drogba scored the first goal on its turf after its reopening, to decide the 2007 FA Cup final, he has made the place his hunting ground, scoring five times in six competitive appearances here and yesterday striking opportunistically in the 67th minute to provide the tipping point in a victory that was tighter than the scoreline made it look.
Thanks to their warrior-marksman, Chelsea are stalking their third triumph in four seasons in football’s oldest club competition.
Two other moments were key and left Martin O’Neill with resentment stewing ulcerously in his stomach. He believed Howard Webb, a referee who he “had the highest regard for up to today” did Aston Villa an “injustice”.
In the Carling Cup final against Manchester United O’Neill was enraged that Phil Dowd failed to send off Nemanja Vidic for a foul on Gabriel Agbonlahor that produced a spot-kick and, once again, a penalty controversy maddened the Irishman, who was certain Jon Obi Mikel should have been sanctioned for a 16th-minute challenge inside the box on Agbonlahor.
O’Neill was even more angry about a John Terry tackle that he said could have crippled James Milner. Villa were still in the game, 1-0 down with 16 minutes remaining, and would have fancied their chances of taking the tie to extra time had Webb punished Terry with a red instead of yellow card.
Drogba was the man of the match for the intervention that broke open a deadlocked game, in which Villa were better in the first half and Chelsea in the second but the difference between the sides was always marginal. O’Neill’s men were stung by losing 7-1 to these opponents last month and, with Villa straining every sinew to deny Chelsea in open play, a set-piece always looked Drogba and company’s likeliest route to a lead.
There was luck involved, and Villa complicity. Richard Dunne headed away a corner but no one was marking Terry on the edge of the box and Terry’s mishit shot went straight to Drogba. The striker — also left free — beat Brad Friedel with a canny left-footed touch.
A quarter of the match remained and Villa, serial counterattackers, were left to play a game they dislike — one of taking the play to good opposition. Forward Villa flooded, only to be felled with sniper shots.
Two further goals came in the final minutes. First, with a sumptuous cross, Michael Ballack found Florent Malouda, who converted at the far post. Then, on a break, Nicolas Anelka worked the ball to Frank Lampard, who beat Friedel from close range.
Chelsea fans’ chant of “we want seven” was harsh. Thanks to superior striking, their team deserved to win, but even 3-0 was unfair on Villa.

Even Chelsea’s players thought Villa should have got a penalty yet while perhaps six referees out of 10 would have awarded one against Mikel, there was enough complexity about the incident to explain why the ideally-placed Webb did not.

Petr Cech 6/10Regularly punched clear when presented with Aston Villa’s cedar forest of options at set pieces
Paulo Ferreira 6The Portugal international is enjoying a renaissance in the absence of Jose Bosingwa and Branislav Ivanovic
Alex 7The quiet one in Chelsea’s central defence concentrated on the simple parts of the game, occasionally digging his captain out
John Terry 4Agbonlahor’s pace left him on the turf again. Lucky his off-target shot fell to Drogba for the opener, but an ugly foul on Milner
Yuri Zhirkov 5Still getting used to the English game, the Russian made some passing errors but marshalled Downing well
Mikel 6Could have been penalised for tussle with Agbonlahor had Howard Webb not been alert to the striker’s part in the wrestling match
Joe Cole 5Not the virtuoso performance of Old Trafford as he slipped around the uneven turf. Almost caught Friedel out with early volley
Deco 7Hindering his own request to return to Brazil with the quality of his play. An outlet for defenders, ever vigilant for the killer pass
Frank Lampard 7Subdued in the centre of the park as he concentrated on linking the play, yet still a scorer from his solitary, late, chance
Florent Malouda 7Playing further forward as Chelsea enjoyed Wembley’s width. Created a fine chance for Drogba and sealed the win with a volley
Didier Drogba 7Combined well with Malouda to manufacture the first-half’s best chance, then he scored the opener with an assured finish
Substitutes: Kalou, Ballack and Anelka helped Chelsea keep a grip in last 20 minutes

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NOTW:

BLUES TALISMAN DROG IS HAVING HIS DAY

HE is Chelsea's lucky charm, the man for all occasions as they chase the Premier League and FA Cup Double.
Unseen through the eyes of assistant referee Simon Beck last weekend, he just about did for Manchester United's title ambitions at Old Trafford.
Yesterday, it was the turn of Aston Villa - ending their FA Cup aspirations with the strike that sank Martin O'Neill's men.
This is Didier Drogba's year, perhaps his best in a blue shirt, powering his way to glory with 32 exceptional goals.
Mention Wembley and his eyes light up, scorer of the extra-time winner against Manchester United in the 2007 final and last year's equaliser against Everton.
He was the difference again, bursting into life just as Villa were threatening to pull off a semi-final shock.
Now the Double really is on for Chelsea.
They are six games away from creating history, taking their place alongside Preston, Tottenham, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Villa.
Those six teams have achieved the dream and Chelsea could be the seventh, muscling in on some of the best sides ever assembled in England.
It's within Chelsea's grasp now - an outstanding achievement in Carlo Ancelotti's first season.
They head back to Wembley on May 15 for another shot at the FA Cup.
Drogba will be on the loose, the penalty-box prowler with the goalscoring instincts of a true great.
He was there when it mattered, diverting John Terry's misguided strike beyond Brad Friedel with near-surgical precision.
It needed something special to see off O'Neill's team, pulling away from Wembley last night on the end of a scoreline that does not reflect their performance.
This is another hard-luck story for O'Neill, still smarting from the 7-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge. And don't even dare mention the Carling Cup.
There wasn't much sympathy among Chelsea's players as they eventually swatted aside a team who almost deserved to take them all the way.
O'Neill has every right to feel aggrieved about the result, denied a first-half penalty when John Obi Mikel clashed with Gabriel Agbonlahor.
Howard Webb waited, preparing to pull the trigger and give Villa the chance to take the lead from the spot.
He had to give it for the Chelsea midfielder's clumsy challenge, ignoring Agbonlahor's tug on Mikel's shirt to keep his balance.
Instead he played on, waving Chelsea through to yet another FA Cup final.
Such a shame for Villa, by far the better team for the majority of the match and yet unable to find a way past Petr Cech.
This was first class from O'Neill's side as they used the attacking thrust of Stewart Downing and Ashley Young to chip away at Chelsea's defence.
They yo-yoed up and down the touchline, human dynamos clinging on to Villa's FA Cup dream.
Downing was driven, cutting in from the left to create his team's two best chances in an absorbing opening spell.
They held on to the ball magnificently, James Milner at the hub, setting up Villa's attacks from the centre of midfield. Once he changed his boots, he kept his feet, crisply sending passes across the surface to the feet of Villa's wingers.
There were always options, a touch out to the left to find Downing or a ball into the path of Young on the right.
The strategy was spot on, getting into Chelsea's ribs by closing them down and denying Ancelotti's team time and space.
Such demands from O'Neill - surely borrowed from the Barcelona text book - and yet his Villa team was equal to them.
The sight of Lampard demanding more from his side after 10 minutes, flexing his muscles in the middle of the pitch gave Villa the incentive.
Chelsea were on the backfoot, unprepared for the probing runs of Young and Downing, driving Villa forward with purpose and pace.
There was more to this tie than turning up. It required a goal to be worked or an angle to be created before they could think about a place in the final.
Villa thrived in the Wembley atmosphere, encouraged by the travelling Holte End supporting their heroes.
Terry took a header off Agbonlahor at the far post, getting a touch when the Villa striker was perfectly set inside the six-yard box.
Villa had them rattled, on the rack after failing to find their feet in this stadium.
A goal was all they needed, something for their supporters to cling on to before Chelsea raised their game in the second half.
Perhaps it could have come from John Carew, clipping Stiliyan Petrov's corner wide at the start of the second half.
Naturally they will look at the penalty that never was, a shocking decision from Webb when he was right on the spot.
This is home from home for Chelsea, FA Cup holders after recovering from Louis Saha's first-minute goal last season.
Back then it was all about the influence of Guus Hiddink, dragging the team back into contention for major honours after Luiz Felipe Scolari's desperate spell.
Their supporters have a love affair with the competition, starting when Roberto Di Matteo scored against Middlesbrough just 42 seconds into the 1997 final.
They have gone on to win it three times since and yet they looked a long way short of their very best against Villa.
Joe Cole, scorer of Chelsea's opening goal at United last weekend with that exquisite backheel, appeared unsettled.
His best move came down the left, cutting in with his right boot and sending an effort wide of Brad Friedel's post.
That was the real Chelsea, showing defenders a clean pair of heels as they target the Double.
The Premier League will be theirs if they can keep United at arm's length in the last five games, a welcome return to the glory days for Roman Abramovich.
That's the priority but the FA Cup has special affinity with Chelsea's players after such a successful period.
Drogba had been promised a starting role by Ancelotti earlier in the week and yet Villa were well prepared for him.
Defensively, they had handled him brilliantly, with James Collins and Richard Dunne sharing the responsibility whenever he made a forward run.
That was until Dunne's defensive header was met by the boot of Terry, driving the ball into the path of Drogba to put Chelsea in front.
Maybe Terry got it right two weeks ago, accusing Villa of running out of steam when Chelsea got going at Stamford Bridge.
They couldn't recover from Drogba's strike, conceding again when Lampard directed a pass out to substitute Michael Ballack, whose cross was converted by Florent Malouda.
There was still time for Lampard to score, putting the tie well beyond Villa's reach deep into stoppage time with a tidy finish beyond Friedel.
The results sets them up for something special, two points clear of United in the Premier League and assured of their place in the final.
It will lead to another selection dilemma for Ancelotti, still unsure of his first-choice striker as the season reaches its climax.
After the week Drogba's just had, he has surely settled it once and for all.

REMAINING GAMES - ASTON VILLA: Wed v Everton (h); Apr 18 Portsmouth (a); Apr 21 v Hull (a); Apr 25 v Birmingham (h); May 1 v Man City (a); May 9 v Blackburn (h).
CHELSEA: Tue v Bolton (h); Sat v Tottenham (a); Apr 25 v Stoke (h); May 1 v Liverpool (a); May 9 v Wigan (h).

PETR CECH: Missed a cross in the first half for which he could have been punished but, like for Friedel, most of his afternoon was routine. Mark (out of 10): 6
PAULO FERREIRA: Has fitted into Chelsea's back line effortlessly in recent weeks. Found the slippery pitch a problem but was comfortable overall. 7
JOHN TERRY: A typically no-frills performance by the ex-England captain. Was equal to the little Villa threw at him and looks better alongside Alex than Carvalho. 7
ALEX: Looks like Terry's long-term centre-back partner. Ensured Carew's threat was minimal and was a major reason why the Norwegian was subbed. 7
YURI ZHIRKOV: Attacked the vulnerable Cuellar well and wasn't tested enough defensively. An able deputy in Ashley Cole's absence. 6
DECO: Another who looks reborn in recent weeks. Was able to find space but his lack of pace stopped him getting forward and hurting Villa. 7
JOHN OBI MIKEL: Lucky to get away with foul on Agbonlahor in the box but eased through the match and didn't have to sweat against Villa midfielders. 7
FRANK LAMPARD: Some neat passes through the midfield looked like creating chances for the Blues and rounded off Chelsea's day with the third goal. 7
JOE COLE: Looked inventive in all areas of the pitch early on but his threat decreased as the game wore on. Still a surprise when subbed off. 6
DIDIER DROGBA: Didn't look up for it at times but was dangerous when Chelsea got the ball to him. Perked up in the second half and got breakthrough. 8
FLORENT MALOUDA: Was involved in most of Chelsea's best work. Sent over the corner that led to Drogba's strike and scored the second himself. 8
SUBSTITUTES: Kalou (for Cole) 65mins 6, Ballack (for Deco) 76mins 7, Anelka (for Drogba) 80mins 6. Not used: Hilario, Ivanovic, Sturridge, Belletti.

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Mail:

Aston Villa 0 Chelsea 3:
Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda and Frank Lampard fire Blues to yet another FA Cup final
By Rob Draper at Wembley

Arms folded and his forehead set in a permanent frown, Carlo Ancelotti surveyed the scene at Wembley.
Frank Lampard had just tapped home Chelsea's third goal and his team had secured a place in the FA Cup final, a success to follow the famous victory at Manchester United last weekend which put them on top of the Premier League.
Yet Ancelotti's face betrayed not a hint of happiness, even though he would be inhuman if he did not permit himself a modest moment of satisfaction.
Since being on the verge of dismissal after the club's defeat by Inter Milan in the Champions League a month ago, Ancelotti can now anticipate the prospect of a Premier League and FA Cup Double in his first season in English football. And not even a certain self-styled 'Special One' managed that.
'I don't want to think about this,' he said. 'I don't like to speak with if, if we win ... this is not really true yet. We know that we are very close to winning but we haven't won anything yet.'
Perhaps he is right to take nothing for granted for yesterday's scoreline was extraordinarily harsh on Villa, whose boss Martin O'Neill departed Wembley an aggrieved man yet again.
This was no repeat of the 7-1 humiliation his side suffered at Chelsea two weeks earlier; yesterday Ancelotti's team were required to fight manfully for this victory.
Yet when O'Neill spoke of an 'injustice' at the end of the game, he was referring not to the balance of play but to another weekend of poor officiating. Blaming the referee to rewrite headlines and animate fans with a sense of righteous indignation may be a cynical game played by the majority of football mangers, yet it was difficult not to feel enormous sympathy for O'Neill.
His team were denied a clear penalty on 16 minutes by referee Howard Webb when John Obi Mikel stuck out a leg and felled the slippery Gabriel Agbonlahor, who was poised to strike.
It may be that Webb chose to ignore the offence, as Agbonlahor had a handful of Mikel's shirt while both players tussled for the ball. But having seemingly failed to spot that foul, he should logically have blown up for the secondary offence, which would have likely seen Mikel dismissed.
'It was a game-changing decision,' lamented O'Neill, and it was hard to disagree. A month ago, at the same end of Wembley Stadium, early in the Carling Cup final, referee Phil Dowd declined to send off Nemanja Vidic, also for a foul on Agbonlahor and Manchester United went on to win 2-1. At least on that day Villa had a penalty.
There was more. On 74 minutes John Terry launched a challenge on James Milner that would have resulted in apoplexy from this argumentative Chelsea team had it been committed on one of theirs.
His foot high and his intent seemingly clear, the Chelsea captain slid in, directing his studs into Milner's shin.
'JamesMilner is exceptionally lucky to have his career intact, said O'Neill afterwards. 'It was just horrendous.'
Webb produced a yellow card but when aggression like this is tolerated thus, as it frequently is in England, the game is diminished. Yet though Villa will nurse their wounds today, in truth they struggled to match Chelsea as the game progressed.
Early on they were in the ascendant. Milner sized up a shot from 25 yards out, struck and was a mere inch wide of Petr Cech's right-hand post. Ashley Young and Stewart Downing were swapping wings and tormenting Paulo Ferreira at will and on 33 minutes Downing delivered a cross from the left flank, which Villa were attacking with abandon.
Cech misjudged and Terry could only get the merest touch but John Carew, seemingly stunned the ball had got through, was unable to adjust his body position to head into what would have been an open goal.
Slowly the Cup holders took a grip. Villa were over reliant on crosses and corners, and after Carew went close with a header in the first minute of the second half, Cech and his defenders proved utterly unmoved.
Though Villa and their fans were buoyant, danger lurked in Didier Drogba, who threatened to exploit the space at the back as O'Neill's side pushed on.
When Richard Dunne executed a superb block on 64 minutes to deny Drogba and Villa scrambled the ball for a corner, they might have assumed the worst has past. They were deceived, however.
Though Dunne headed out Malouda's corner, it fell on the edge of the box to Terry, who Villa had neglected to mark.
Although the Chelsea captain miscued his shot, Drogba was unattended on the six-yard line to direct the ball past Brad Friedel, the sloppiest of goals to concede.
Chelsea remained in control and when Florent Malouda sprinted clear to turn in Michael Ballack's sweeping cross on 88 minutes, their victory was secure.
In the fourth minute of injury-time there was time for a delightful back-heel from Malouda for Nicolas Anelka to play in Frank Lampard, who tapped the ball home.

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