Independent:
Diego Costa earns Jose Mourinho important win on return
Chelsea 2 Aston Villa 0
Glenn MOORE
With Jose Mourinho having diagnosed a lack of confidence, a visit from Aston Villa is just what Chelsea’s doctor would have ordered (had she not been pursuing legal recourse after being banished from the bench). With one point from seven games Villa are even more fragile than Chelsea and after a bright start they gifted their hosts the opening goal and swiftly faded.
“We are staying up,” chorused the home support, a suitable riposte to Villa fans telling Mourinho he was “not special any more”. The light-hearted mood was infectious, even Roman Abramovich was seen smiling.
Chelsea are still 10 points off the Premier League summit, but the gap to the Champions League places, which is half as much, looks very bridgeable.
“It was not a brilliant performance but a solid performance,” said Mourinho. “When the confidence is a bit low, the quality goes a down and you have to bring other ingredients. They did that in an amazing way: great discipline and effort defensively, great balance.”
That balance was achieved, said Mourinho, by dropping Eden Hazard, Footballer of the Year last season, to ensure his central midfielders did not have to worry about protecting the left flank when Alan Hutton went forward. Hazard, he added, had not been spoken to individually but “I told the players that this is not the moment to think about themselves, this is a moment for the team, just the team”.
“Solidity,” said Mourinho, was the reason Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who was making his first Premier League start of the season, was withdrawn at half-time and replaced by Nemanja Matic.
The 19-year-old Loftus-Cheek was one of five changes from the team that lost 3-1 at home to Southampton with the changes including a first Premier League start for Baba Rahman, a £14million summer recruit, at left-back.
The way Hutton went past him after 11 minutes to bring the game’s first save from the Chelsea goalkeeper, Asmir Begovic, went a long way to explaining why Mourinho had chosen Pedro instead of Hazard on the left flank.
Though Villa’s team included only six players who have experienced a league victory this season – the opening day win at Bournemouth – they did not initially look haunted by the growing prospect of relegation, creating the best of the sparse chances, with Rudy Gestede also going close.
Then, shortly before the break, their goalkeeper, Brad Guzan, hit a difficult flat pass to Joleon Lescott. The former England centre-half mis-controlled the ball and it was seized on by Willian. The Brazilian drew Guzan and squared a pass for Diego Costa to tap in his first goal in the Premier League since August.
“It was a poor goal to give away,” said Villa manager Tim Sherwood. But he was not about to blame his goalkeeper. “Mistakes are there and we have to stick together. They’re team mistakes,” he said.
“It’s about bouncing back and making sure we don’t do it again.”
Sherwood added: “I thought we were better than them before that mistake but we lost again and are in a perilous position.”
Of his own future, he added: “I’ve had no indication that the clock’s ticking, but I know as a manager you need to win matches. If you don’t you’ll invariably lose your job somewhere along the line.”
The second goal, after 54 minutes, owed much to a fine advantage played by referee Roger East. Ramires was flattened by Kieran Richardson but East saw the ball was en route to Costa, whose attempted pass to Willian looped past Guzan off the ankle of his own defender, Hutton.
There was still 36 minutes left, but both teams knew that was game over.
======================
Observer:
Diego Costa puts Chelsea back on track in win over Aston Villa
Chelsea 2 - 0 Aston Villa
Dominic Fifield at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea’s players have been queueing up of late to pledge themselves to José Mourinho, doing their level best to douse suggestions mutiny is rife within the ranks, though this was the show of faith the manager really required. Business-like successes are to be savoured after an unfathomably shoddy start to the Premier League defence and a dismissal of a poor Aston Villa team can be cherished. The champions sacrificed their most creative talent here, ground out a performance and, at last, have some respite.
There were flashes of their former selves offered up en route. Most of them were fleeting, admittedly, but flurries of quality were still more than enough to condemn Villa to a fifth league defeat in succession.
Diego Costa, by his own admission overweight in pre-season after a summer back in Brazil, was more mobile and threatening for the right reasons as he returned from domestic suspension. This was him close to his authoritative best with indications, too, that Cesc Fàbregas’s radar is clicking back in. That combination had been key to this team’s lightning start to last term. Their telepathy appears restored.
Throw in the energy of Ramires and a more comfortable display from Nemanja Matic following his introduction at the break and there was cause for optimism even if it took the exclusion of Eden Hazard to deliver the required stability. There was better balance to this lineup, central midfielders not venturing out of position to cover team-mates’ deficiencies on the flanks where Willian and Pedro worked feverishly and effectively. Hazard’s own quest for form has left him prone to defensive slackness. By sacrificing last season’s player of the year, Mourinho banked on a more functional side prevailing.
“I left him out because we were conceding lots of goals and needed to defend better,” said Mourinho. “We need our midfielders to be concentrating on central areas, not worrying about compensating on the left or right. It’s like a blanket. If you pull one side, your feet are in the cold.”
Quite how long Hazard – who did manage seven minutes off the bench – is shivering out in the wilderness remains to be seen but Chelsea’s predicament requires a creative talent who signed a new five-and-a-half-year contract in February to emulate Willian and Pedro, allying discipline to those mind-boggling flashes of skill.
The collective has to be put first at present. Ruben Loftus-Cheek discovered that much when his bright attacking display was checked at the break with the manager citing naivety out of possession as reason enough to prompt his replacement. It was a harsh lesson to be learned with this win merely a start.
“Not a brilliant performance, but a solid performance,” said Mourinho, whose side had been presented with a first-half lead and benefited from a rare slice of luck when Costa’s second-half shot flicked from Alan Hutton’s calf and drifted inside Brad Guzan’s near-post with the goalkeeper wrong-footed and distraught.
The sense of crisis that lingered after the match swirled more intensely around the visitors whose manager, Tim Sherwood, had cut a helpless figure on the touchline. Chelsea always looked like a side who would eventually click into gear. There is simply too much quality in their ranks to anchor them in the bottom half for long. The same cannot be said of Villa.
This was by no means their slackest performance of term but, for all their use of the ball in midfield, they lacked bite up front to make any real impact. The visitors knew Baba Rahman was a weak link, but could not properly exploit the left-back on league debut.
Chelsea had conceded at least twice in all their top-flight games, with the exception of the home victory over Arsenal, but Villa had no weapons to wound them. Their best opportunity came when the contest was goalless, Jordan Ayew ambling easily away from Fàbregas and César Azpilicueta and squaring into the penalty area. Rudy Gestede had eked out a yard of space in front of John Terry, yet the striker was stretching when he poked at the ball with the outside of his right foot, his effort looping over the bar.
Within minutes they had self‑destructed. Guzan, under vague pressure from Pedro, scuffed a clearance awkwardly towards Joleon Lescott who was too startled to control the ball properly. Willian anticipated the error and stole away possession, darting free of the centre-half and into the area where he centred unselfishly for Costa to convert into an empty net. The sense of utter deflation on the visitors’ bench was palpable.
“It was a poor one to give away, but mistakes are made and we have to stick together,” said Sherwood. “We carried the ball well, our full-backs got forward at the right times, we were a threat between the lines, and had good possession. We were in control of the football.”
He may not be in control of his own destiny. Had Villa been humiliated here then the axe may have swung. As it is, he staggers on hoping he will be able to generate form in time. “It’s a young group in transition,” he said. “I can’t rest my hat on them and say I’ve seen them having done it before in the Premier League, because they haven’t. But we’re upbeat in there. We are in a perilous position, but there were positives from that performance. I’ve had no indication that the clock’s ticking. But, as a manager, you need to win matches and, if you don’t, you’ll invariably lose your job somewhere along the line.”
============================
Telegraph:
Chelsea 2 Aston Villa 0
Diego Costa eases pressure on Jose Mourinho but Tim Sherwood woes grow
Diego Costa returns from suspension to score one and force another as Blues fans sing "we are staying up"
By Jason Burt
From player of the season to a liability? He has not quite fallen that far but it has been some descent for Eden Hazard. But then, from champions to a team scrapping in mid-table. It has been some drop for Chelsea.
They went into this game with the scrutiny intense around the future of Jose Mourinho – and, of course, that of the Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood – and came out of it with a desperately needed win and a debate given further fuel over the decline of Hazard.
It was Mourinho himself who heightened that debate. Hazard was unceremoniously dropped with the Chelsea manager – who also then hooked teenager Ruben Loftus-Cheek at half-time for not being disciplined enough – unequivocal as to why.
“I left out Hazard because we are conceding lots of goals,” Mourinho said of his purely “tactical decision” before adding: “I continue, or he comes in our direction and tries to emulate the same work that Willian and Pedro put in.”
Asked whether he had explained his decision to Hazard, Mourinho was equally forthright. “I told the players that this is not the moment to think about themselves or their personal situation, a moment to moan or try to be selfish in the approach,” he said. “This is a moment for the team, just the team, and nothing else. I have to make decisions to try and bring results back.”
That is Mourinho’s prerogative, undoubtedly, and the result was achieved even if he left Hazard high and dry in the process. In front of Roman Abramovich, again here at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea gained the victory which, although deserved, owed much to a huge slice of fortune with an inept decision by Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan gifting them their first goal and then a cruel bit of luck, with a vital deflection off defender Alan Hutton, delivering their second.
Sherwood will rue it all, will believe that circumstances are conspiring against him but the cold facts are that his team remain in the bottom three, four points from safety, having now lost five league matches in a row since a draw at home to hapless Sunderland.
Sherwood will hope to be given the time to take the team for next weekend’s home match against Swansea City, he will cling to what appeared to be an improved performance, something the club’s hierarchy needed to see, but he must surely know that time is running out on his regime unless things change dramatically.
Not that he conceded that. Instead Sherwood, sporting a velvet jacket although this was far from a smooth afternoon, denied all knowledge that his job is on the line – even though it most emphatically is. “I’ve seen those reports,” Sherwood defiantly said.
“As a manager, you need to win matches. If you don’t you’ll invariably lose your job somewhere along the line. I’ll take my share of responsibility, but it’s a team effort. We stick together.”
Swansea may now be his defining match while this was a landmark for Mourinho – a 200th win as Chelsea manager (from just 309 games, with 43 losses) – but it did not feel like any cause for celebration. His name was sung, he acknowledged the supporters – and there was more hunger from Diego Costa (who had previously admitted to too great an appetite having returned for pre-season training overweight) – but Chelsea did not have their swagger back. Not yet. Costa led them, Willian and Ramires were impressive, there were some deft touches from Cesc Fabregas but it largely remained unconvincing. There is a clear vulnerability.
The question was – did Villa have the ability to exploit it? Sherwood was right to praise Jack Grealish and Carles Gil, was right to praise his team’s “desire and effort” and was also right in suggesting that they were in the ascendancy until Chelsea scored. But, once behind there did not appear any belief.
Villa had rightly sought to expose Baba Rahman who, on his league debut at left-back, appears a long way short of justifying the eye-popping £21.7million Chelsea paid German club Augsburg to acquire. Hutton ran past him – over him actually – to then shoot low with Asmir Begovic saving with his legs. The rebound fell to Hutton but his follow-up was scrambled clear.
Then Grealish breezed beyond Rahman to again drive the ball goalwards, only for Begovic to, again, save before Rudy Gestede wasted the best chance as he flicked a shot over the cross-bar with the outside of his foot.
And then Villa imploded. Guzan had appeared rash and nervous – Sherwood had hoped to replace him in the summer – and tried to sweep the ball across to Joleon Lescott, failing to spot the defender was under pressure from Willian. Lescott mis-controlled, Willian intervened, ran forward and slipped a pass inside to Costa who simply side-footed it into the net.
It was as if the balloon deflated for Villa. They suddenly appeared flaccid. And Chelsea capitalized. Ramires barreled into a tackle, wiping out Ashley Westwood, legitimately, and teed up Fabregas who floated an angled cross towards Costa. Had the striker been brimming with confidence Costa would have volleyed but, instead, he took the ball down, checked back and tried to find Willian only for his pass to clip up off Hutton’s heels, wrong-footing Guzan. And also ending up in the net. And that was it. Game over. Not game over for Mourinho – who then made his feelings plain on Hazard – but possibly, quickly moving towards that for Sherwood.
=======================
Mail:
Chelsea 2-0 Aston Villa: Diego Costa makes Brad Guzan pay for embarrassing gaffe before playing a part in Alan Hutton own goal
Chelsea returned to winning ways in the Premier League with a 2-0 victory over Aston Villa
By Matt Barlow
Armed with that vote of confidence from the board, Jose Mourinho’s messages of intent may have carried a little extra weight, not least for Eden Hazard.
Hazard, the best player in the English football last season, was dumped on the bench, where he remained until the 83rd minute, by which time Chelsea had rediscovered their winning touch.
Diego Costa had tapped the Premier League champions into the lead after a defensive mistake by Aston Villa and will claim the second, although it is expected to go down as an own goal by Alan Hutton.
Costa, having spoken emphatically in support of Mourinho during the international break, backed his words with action. The proof was in the pudding.
Having admitted he returned overweight for pre-season, thinking it would be easy to slip back into the groove, he is back leading the team after his three-match domestic ban.
Costa looked more like the lean, mean goal-scoring machine who tore up the Premier League last season, and Mourinho was relieved to see an improved display from his team.
They lost 3-1 at home to Southampton on their previous encounter, a game which triggered long discussions between Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich and his closest aides.
For once, Abramovich backed his manager to lead the team out of their slump and this was echoed in Mourinho’s team selection.
Out went Gary Cahill, little more than a week after he captained England for the first time. Out went Oscar. And Radamel Falcao, who started up front against Southampton, did not even make the bench.
Hazard’s omission caught the eye, as did the warning which followed the game from Mourinho.
‘I left out Hazard because we are conceding lots of goals,’ said the Portuguese. ‘We need to defend better. We need our midfielders to be just worried in the central area of the pitch, not worrying about compensating on the left or right.
‘Playing with Willian and Pedro, the midfielders don’t have to move left or right. They know those parts are controlled. Pedro and Willian did amazing work. It was leaving super-quality on the bench, but bringing tactical discipline.’
Mourinho insisted it was all about the team. Cahill was left out so that Kurt Zouma could deal with the aerial power of Rudy Gestede and although Ruben Loftus-Cheek was handed his first start of the Premier League season, he was replaced at half-time.
‘This is not a moment to moan or try to be selfish,’ said Mourinho. ‘This is a moment for the team, just the team, and nothing else. When we have better confidence levels then we’ll go back to where we were.’
It was a win for Chelsea but not a convincing performance. Villa wilted feebly after a promising start when Hutton and Jack Grealish forced saves from Asmir Begovic. Jordan Ayew went close with a free-kick and Gestede skewed a good chance over the bar. All this when the game was goalless.
Defeat leaves Villa boss Tim Sherwood, without a win since the opening day of the campaign, under increasing pressure despite his defiance and the support of the travelling fans, who sang his name. Chelsea fans chanted: ‘We are staying up,’ and Abramovich was all smiles for a change. His team are up into mid-table. They remain 10 points adrift of leaders Manchester City but have stopped the rot and have a far more menacing edge with Costa rampaging up front.
He opened the scoring when keeper Brad Guzan fired a pass at Joleon Lescott which was too brisk for the centre-half to control. It squirmed under his foot and Willian pounced, taking the ball in his stride and advancing into the box.
Guzan dashed out, keen to make amends, but Willian rolled a pass square to Costa, who swept it into an empty net. Nine minutes into the second half they were two up and again Villa contributed to their own downfall.
Ramires won possession in midfield and Cesc Fabregas swept it forward to Costa, who gathered it superbly, ducked inside Micah Richards and tried to shape the ball low towards the far post. Costa’s effort caught the heels of Hutton, however, and spun past Guzan at his near post. As it did the tension washed away from Stamford Bridge.
Twice Costa was close to extending the lead, but miscued a header and was unable to connect with a pass threaded his way by Willian.
‘It was not a brilliant performance, but a solid performance,’ said Mourinho. ‘In football you are brilliant when the confidence levels are very high and the players are able to put on the pitch all their qualities.
‘When they feel the pressure of the moment, you have to bring other ingredients to the game, and they did that in an amazing way.
‘Great discipline and effort, great balance in the team. At this moment it’s difficult to be brilliant.’
===========================
Mirror:
Chelsea 2-0 Aston Villa: 5 things we learned as Diego Costa's strike eases pressure on Blues
By John Cross
But there are more problems for Tim Sherwood as Alan Hutton's own goal leaves Villa with only four points from nine games
Diego Costa helped fire Chelsea to a much-needed win at Stamford Bridge - but the pressure remains on Aston Villa and Tim Sherwood.
The Blues striker struck in the first half after a Brad Guzan error.
Alan Hutton's own goal doubled the lead in the second half - and that's how it ended.
But what did we learn?
Here are five things from chief football writer John Cross:
1) No wonder we haven’t seen much of Baba
Have you noticed Jose Mourinho’s barbs about Chelsea’s summer transfer dealings? Well, the theory is The Special One wasn’t particularly keen on signing Ghana full back Baba Rahman.
And no wonder. Baba cost £21.7m from Ausburg and is the most unlike Mourinho full back you can imagine. This was his first Premier League start and it’s fair to say his game is about attack being the best form of defence.
He was even undone by Aston Villa right back Alan Hutton on a few occasions.
2) From Brad to worse
Villa keeper Brad Guzan is the weakest link. His distribution is shocking, his poor clearance led to Chelsea’s opener.
It’s not the first time either. He did it at Man City last season, Palace this season and his poor kick put Joleon Lescott under pressure, sparked a break and Chelsea took their cue.
No wonder Tim Sherwood has been looking to replace him. He’s lost his way, confidence and his form. You’ll go down with him in goal.
3) Ruben Loftus-Cheek won’t make it under Mourinho
Sorry, but that’s the harsh truth. He was played out of position - more No. 10 than anchorman - and lasted 45 minutes before being replaced by Nemanja Matic.
I’m just not convinced that Mourinho trusts young players, especially when he’s under pressure and needs results himself.
His discipline and work rate count against him. He’s got the ability, but Mourinho demands hard yards.
4) Tim Sherwood has got questionable fashion sense
From gilet to velvet jacket, Tactics’ touchline attire caused some debate as to whether it was stylish or rather dodgy.
His black velvet jacket caught the eye. In fairness, Villa also caught the eye with a better, more committed performance. In the first half they were actually quite good.
It has to be about improved performances rather than winning at Stamford Bridge. If that is the barometer, then Sherwood will be a little happier despite the result.
5) The gloves are off for Diego
Diego Costa started the game wearing a pair of blue gloves. Come on, Diego. It’s mid-October and you’re supposed to be a hard man.
Thankfully, Costa ditched the gloves early on, worked his socks off, battled, scrapped and really put in a shift for the manager. He epitomised a gritty but unspectacular display. That’s what Chelsea needed, though.
He did what he does best - caused the opposing defence problems. Scored the opener but the second went in off Alan Hutton. That means Own Goal is top scorer with three. Costa and Willian both have two each so far this season.
Player ratings - by John Cross:
CHELSEA
•Begovic 6 - Showed Villa what they are missing with solid display.
•Azpilicueta 7 - Superb block to stop Lescott from scoring. Top full back.
•Zouma 6 - Looks an absolute beast in defence. Imposing presence.
•Terry 6 - Solid. He’ll worry this means he won’t play in Kiev.
•Baba 4 - Awful. He’s not a Mourinho full back. Doesn’t defend.
•Ramires 7 - Much better when in the middle. A nuisance - and that’s a good thing.
•Loftus-Cheek 5 - Lasted 45 minutes before being hooked. Great shame.
•Pedro 4 - Very disappointing again. Made very little impact since signing.
•Fabregas 7 - Much better in the second half when he pushed further forward.
•Willian 7 - Booked. Worked hard, ran with the ball, tracked back
•Costa 8 - MotM. He’s definitely fighting for Mourinho. Good performance.
Substitutes
•Matic, for Loftus-Cheek, 45 mins, 6
•Hazard, for Pedro, 83 mins
Aston Villa
•Guzan 4 - Shocking clearance gifted Chelsea an opener. Weak link.
•Hutton 6 - Played well but unwittingly deflected Costa’s shot into own net.
•Richards 6 - Strong, committed display. Captain ensured Villa were better.
•Lescott 6 - Put needlessly under pressure by Guzan on Chelsea opener.
•Richardson 6 - Booked. Did OK, fairly solid and helped Villa tighten up.
•Westwood 6 - Good work rate but some of his passing was sloppy.
•Gueye 4 - Very poor. Did not work hard enough, easily outmanoeuvred.
•Gill 5 - Hard working but struggled to make an impression on the game.
•Ayew 5 - Booked. Set up good chance for Gustede.
•Grealish 7 - Worked hard, his dribbling caused problems, decent game.
•Gestede 6 - Had good chance in first half. Strong in the air, caused problems.
Substitues
•Amavi, for, Richardson, 64 mins, 5
•Traore, for Ayew, 68 mins, 5
=======================
Express:
Chelsea 2 - Aston Villa 0: Diego Costa helps ease pressure on Jose Mourinho
IT wasn't quite the new dawn Jose Mourinho promised - but it's a start.
By Colin Mafham
Diego Costa - yes, that man again - helped Chelsea on the long road back up to the top four spot their Special One believes they will get with a goal and an assist that put sorry Villa to the sword.
You might not always like the guy, but he definitely makes a difference. And he did that yesterday alright.
No wonder Mourinho likes him so much. Costa was a thorn in Villa's side all afternoon and put a smile back on his boss's face again in the process.
How the beleaguered Tim Sherwood would love someone like him on his side right now.
Villa's likeable manager has a mountain to climb to safety if this is anything to go by. And if his bosses give him the opportunity, that is.
Mourinho is probably spot on in assuming his job is safe whatever happens. Sherwood definitely can not say the same in these troubled times at Villa Park.
Mind you, it really was more like the gladiators being thrown to the lions to start with.
The perilous positions Mourinho and Sherwood find themselves in at the moment meant a battery of cameras and piercing eyes were there to greet them.
Hardly surprising either really, particularly for Mourinho, given that he left Eden Hazard, Oscar and Nemanja Matic on the bench.
And when Villa fans taunted the Chelsea boss with chants of "you're not special anymore" you couldn't blame the bloke for being a bit more animated than usual.
His worries eased a bit just past the half hour, though, when Diego Costa put Chelsea in front - courtesy of a combined blunder by Brad Guzan and Joleon Lescott.
The keeper's clearance was bad enough, but Lescott should have been able to deal with it instead of being so easily brushed aside by Willian.
Chelsea's Brazilian didn't need to be told twice what to do then and his final ball found Costa in front of a gaping goal.
Costa won't get too many easier goals this season.
To be fair, Chelsea barely deserved that. Villa's Rudy Gestede had home hearts in their mouths on a couple of earlier occasions and he and his teammates probably had good reason to feel a bit aggrieved at going in at half time a goal down.
Mourinho will have had reservations about debutant defender, Baba Rahman, in that first half as well.
The Ghanan hardly looked worth the £14million he cost from FC Augsburg, even after his boss found the need to have a fatherly word or two with him on the touchline.
Still, it was young Ruben Loftus-Cheek Mourinho chose to replace - with Matic - for the second half.
But it was that man Costa again who really eased the champions' nerves - even though Chelsea's second on 54 minutes was credited as an own goal by Alan Hutton.
Cesc Fabregas's superb defence-splitting ball to Costa was the best thing Chelsea had done all afternoon up to then and the way the controversial striker brought it down certainly deserved a goal.
But poor Hutton got his leg in the way of the final shot and this time Guzan was blameless as the ball was deflected past him.
You have to give credit to the Chelsea faithful after that, though. And those in The Shed end in particular.
There was no way they were going to let their side lose this one and the rousing chorus of support they mounted for a full five minutes or so was inspirational indeed.
Mr Mourinho looked well pleased for once. Mr Sherwood didn't.
Tempers frayed a bit in the technical area for a while, but it was all handbags stuff - especially after Ray Wilkins, back at The Bridge with Villa this time, played peacemaker.
How long he and Sherwood will stay around to continue doing that is anyone's guess.
Chelsea: Begovic 7; Azpilicueta 6, Zouma 6, Terry 6, Baba 5; Ramires 6, Fabregas 7; Willian 7 (Remy 90), Loftus-Cheek 5 (Matic 45) 6, Pedro 5 (Hazard 83); Costa 7.
Aston Villa: Guzan 6; Hutton 6, Richards 6, Lescott 5, Richardson 5 (Amavi 64) 5; Gill 5, Westwood 5, Gueye 5, Ayew 5 (Traore 68) 5; Grealish 6; Gestede 6.
Star Man: Diego Costa.
Referee: Roger East.
================================
Star:
Chelsea 2 Aston Villa 0: Mourinho's boys raise their game to heap pressure on Sherwood
IT WAS not quite the new dawn Jose Mourinho promised - but it is a start.
By Colin Mafham
Diego Costa - yes, that man again - helped Chelsea back on to the long road up to the top-four spot that their manager believes they will get.
It was the Spaniard's goal and assist that put sorry Villa to the sword here.
You might not always like the guy but he definitely makes a difference - and he certainly did that yesterday.
No wonder Mourinho likes him so much.
Costa was a thorn in Villa's side all afternoon and put a smile back on his boss's face again in the process.
How beleaguered Villa boss Tim Sherwood would love someone like him in his ranks right now.
The likeable Sherwood has a mountain to climb to reach safety if this performance is anything to go by - if his bosses give him the opportunity, that is.
Mourinho is probably spot on in assuming that his job is safe whatever happens but Sherwood definitely can not say the same in these troubled times.
The Villa boss admitted that his side needs to start winning - and soon.
"Sooner or later we need to start picking up three points," he said.
"We lost again and are in a perilous position - but there were positives out there.
"I've seen those reports about my job on the line but I've had no indication that the clock is ticking.
"As a manager, you need to win matches. If you don't you'll invariably lose your job somewhere along the line. I'll take my share of responsibility but it's a team effort. We need to stick together."
It was like the gladiators being thrown to the lions to start with.
Given the positions they find themselves in at the moment, it was hardly surprising that both Mourinho and Sherwood were greeted by cameras and piercing gazes as they walked out of the tunnel - especially the Portuguese after he left Eden Hazard, Oscar and Nemanja Matic on the bench.
Mourinho revealed how he sacrificed Hazard to stop Chelsea's slump and said: "I left Hazard out because we have been conceding too many goals.
"We needed more stability and effort to help make the team more solid.
"I like quality but when you don't have the ball you don't have quality and you don't have control. It was a tactical decision. I felt we had to make and I told the players that this was not the time to be selfish and think only of themselves.
"I want them to look at the bigger picture to get the results we need back. Once we have done that we can then go back to what we were before. This was not a brilliant performance today but it was a solid one."
When Villa fans taunted the Chelsea boss with chants of, "You're not special anymore" you could not blame him for being a bit more animated than usual.
But Mourinho's worries eased a bit just after the half-hour mark when Costa put Chelsea in front, courtesy of a blunder by Brad Guzan and Joleon Lescott.
Keeper Guzan's clearance was bad enough but Lescott should have been able to deal with it - as it was, he was easily brushed aside by Willian, whose final ball found Costa in front of a gaping goal.
Costa will not score many easier goals this season. But to be fair Chelsea barely deserved their lead.
Prior to that, Rudy Gestede had worked a couple of early chances and he and his team-mates had good reason to feel a bit aggrieved at going into the break a goal down.
Mourinho will probably have had reservations about debutant defender Baba Rahman in that first half too - the Ghanaian hardly looked worth the £14million he cost to bring in from FC Augsburg in the summer.
It was Costa who really eased the champions' nerves, even though Chelsea's second of the afternoon - on 54 minutes - was credited as an own goal by Alan Hutton.
Cesc Fabregas's defence-splitting ball to Costa was the best thing Chelsea had conjured up all afternoon - and the way the controversial striker brought it down was worthy of a goal.
But poor Hutton got his leg in the way of the final shot and this time Guzan was blameless as the ball was deflected past him.
No comments:
Post a Comment