Maccabi Tel-Aviv 4-0

Independent:

Blues need just a draw in final game after win in Israel
Maccabi Tel Aviv 0 Chelsea 4
Jack Pitt-Brooke Sammy Ofer Stadium

This was a small step in the right direction for a Chelsea team still lacking the confidence to make big strides. They won last night, beating Maccabi Tel Aviv 4-0, completing a second successive victory for just the third time this season. They moved up to 10 points in Group G, but because of Dynamo Kiev’s surprising win in Porto they have not confirmed qualification to the last-16 quite yet.
Winning 4-0 in Haifa on a pitch as bad as this one is impressive, although the scoreline slightly flatters Chelsea. They threatened to lose control of this game in the second half, when 1-0 up and only facing 10 men, and needed two Asmir Begovic saves to stay ahead.

It took yet another Willian free-kick to get Chelsea out of that squeeze and there are certainly still questions to be asked about their capacity to create and score in open play. Diego Costa’s lack of movement in the first half prompted a ferocious row with Jose Mourinho, which Costa was fortunate to survive. With John Terry limping off in the second half, this is still a team surrounded by questions as they head back to White Hart Lane on Sunday.
When asked about the win, Mourinho told BT Sport: “It’s very important, especially with what happened in Porto. We really needed to win this match. I hope morale comes, tranquillity comes, confidence comes from this result.
“We [have been] for a long time without two consecutive victories. Everything [in the group] is open for last match but at this moment we are in a good position.”

Mourinho said that Terry is a doubt for the Tottenham game after being carried off on a stretcher.
“We already had one injury on this pitch in training with Ramires Another one tonight with John Terry. We are lucky it was just two. Of course he is a doubt. I don’t want to speak without having tests back in London. I think he is a really big doubt.”
Even given Maccabi’s lack of European pedigree, this was far from the ideal fixture for a team trying to drag themselves out of a slump. In a loud ground, on an awful pitch, 2,000 miles from home, Chelsea came up against a side desperate to make up for their 4-0 embarrassment in September. Chelsea could be forgiven for taking two minutes to get used to their surroundings, but in those two minutes they should have conceded, as Dor Peretz headed over with the first move of the match.
Once Chelsea settled they were a class apart from their tireless but limited hosts. With Oscar, Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic reunited in midfield, they dominated possession, stroking the ball around and hoping for a way through.

It came, as it often does with Chelsea these days, from a set piece. Gary Cahill headed Willian’s corner, only for Predrag Rajkovic to turn it onto the post. Cahill was first to the rebound, though, and he finished comfortably.
That stacked the odds in Chelsea’s favour, and when Tal Ben Haim was sent off, any chance of an even game might have gone with him. Ben Haim should be experienced enough to keep his head in games like this, but his ugly double-kick at Diego Costa suggested otherwise.
Costa had not been at his sharpest and when, just before the break, he declined to make a run onto a clever Fabregas pass, Mourinho turned around and kicked the turf in disgust. As Costa walked off at the break, Mourinho told him how he felt, and Costa responded in kind. Loic Remy spent the interval warming up, and when Costa re-emerged 15 minutes later it was one of the surprises of the night.
Almost as unexpected, though, was the ferocious second-half contest Maccabi’s 10 men produced. Catching Chelsea unaware, Maccabi right-back Eli Dasa ran round the back, forcing a save from Asmir Begovic, before Peretz failed to turn in a free-kick from a similar position. When Tal Ben Haim – the winger, still on the pitch – darted down the right on the break, Begovic was required again to keep the ball out of the top corner of the net.
This was the type of tense period that Chelsea have struggled with this season, but they came through it thanks to another set-piece. It was a Willian free-kick which beat Dynamo Kiev two weeks ago and here, the same man killed the game, in the same way, bending the ball over the wall and into the corner.
With the win assured, if not qualification, Chelsea started to open up. They have not scored many good goals in open play this year, but they made one to be very proud of here. Baba Rahman crossed from the left and Oscar darted into the box to head past Rajkovic. The Serbian goalkeeper had made some good saves but he was left with the same scoreline from Stamford Bridge, as Chelsea scored a fourth in added time. Kurt Zouma, on for the injured John Terry, headed in Oscar’s corner.

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Guardian:

Chelsea’s Willian hits another stunner in 4-0 win over Maccabi Tel Aviv
Maccabi Tel-Aviv 0 - 4 Chelsea

Dominic Fifield at Sammy Ofer Stadium

A second successive win in a campaign littered with unexpected setbacks would normally leave a team buoyed and enthused, but this is Chelsea. José Mourinho’s side departed Haifa top of Group G on goal difference with a rare thrashing to celebrate and comforted by the knowledge a win from their final fixture against Porto will be enough to claim the group. Yet it was still a troubling flipside that occupied their minds.
Anchoring the mood was the fact John Terry sustained ankle damage on a shoddy pitch. The injury to the captain will require scans before Sunday’s awkward trip to Tottenham Hotspur. The manager, who had watched the 34-year-old depart forlorn on a stretcher, admitted he did “not believe too much” the centre-half would be available and had already lost Ramires to a muscle injury when slipping in training the previous evening. He denounced the pitch as dangerous, though if he was helpless on that front he was disgusted on another.

 
It was the ugly argument with Diego Costa on the stroke of half-time that seemed more alarming, exposing a relationship that has become disconcertingly tense this term. The striker’s lack of movement and anticipation is clearly infuriating the Portuguese, Costa’s instincts dulled perhaps by a lack of confidence. Nothing the forward tried came off here. Last Saturday’s winner against Norwich felt like an isolated incident amid sluggish reactions, though the Spain international is clearly quicker to fight his own corner.
When Eden Hazard scurried on to Cesc Fàbregas’s clipped pass and lobbed the ball invitingly into the centre as the contest drifted into stoppage time at the end of the first period, Costa was dawdling on the edge of the area. Mourinho was livid and bellowed his exasperation, gesticulating frantically, with his assistant, Rui Faria, emerging from the dugout attempting to calm him down. Costa screamed back, flinging his arms in dismissal. Oscar and Terry approached him before he left the pitch but he waved them away and pursued his manager down the tunnel like a man possessed.

“I’d wanted him to do a certain movement that he didn’t and I was disappointed,” said Mourinho. “I reacted. He did too. At half-time in the dressing room, a few kisses and a few cuddles. No problem.”
That was deeply unconvincing. Indeed, more telling was his description of his team’s third goal, when Oscar burst into the area to meet Baba Rahman’s fine cross from close-range. “Oscar’s goal, for me, was the one I was most happy with because, finally, we had someone in the box attacking a good delivery,” said the manager. It is easy to see where Costa needs to improve, although, with Radamel Falcao diminished and currently injured and Loïc Rémy a very different kind of centre-forward, Mourinho lacks alternatives in that forward pivot.

He did not need Costa adding to his season’s tally to overcome a poor Maccabi Tel Aviv team, whose status as the group’s whipping boys was confirmed with another heavy defeat. They threatened only fleetingly and were undermined by Tal Ben Haim’s first-half dismissal after he twice attempted to land a kick on Costa, even if Eli Dasa and, most spectacularly, Eran Zahavi subsequently forced Asmir Begovic into smart saves. Yet Chelsea monopolised possession and were always more inconvenienced by the surface than the opposition.

They led when Gary Cahill headed down Willian’s corner, Predrag Rajkovic doing well to scoop the ball on to the post before the centre-half poked in the rebound. Willian’s free-kick and headers from Oscar and the substitute Kurt Zouma gave the scoreline a gloss Mourinho did not think was entirely merited. “The result was too nice for us,” he offered, his frustration at the state of the pitch all too obvious. “Such a beautiful stadium, such a fantastic public – they deserve a better surface because that was bad and dangerous. Yesterday we tried to protect. We trained just a little bit, but Ramires slid and has a muscular injury. Then, to my surprise, Maccabi trained after us on it and, after the warm-up before the game, the pitch was really bad.

“John has an ankle injury I think down to the pitch. For him to have left the pitch with the score only 1-0, I know he’s in trouble. John is a special guy with a special desire to recover. But to leave with the result 1-0, I don’t believe too much that he can play.” Mourinho had actually walked on to the turf while his players celebrated their opening goal to stamp in some of the divots. Repairing his relationship with Costa may take a bit more time and effort.

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Telegraph:

Maccabi Tel Aviv 0 Chelsea 4
Gary Cahill, Willian, Oscar and Kurt Zouma all score in Haifa as Londoners move to top of Group G

Blues stroll to victory but Champions League progress far from certain

By  Matt Law, Football News Correspondent, in Haifa

The result may have been comfortable, but this was not a straightforward night in Israel for Chelsea and manager Jose Mourinho.

Goals from Gary Cahill, Willian, Oscar and substitute Kurt Zouma handed Chelsea a vital win against 10-man Tel Aviv, who had former Blues defender Tal Ben Haim sent off for a foul on Diego Costa.

But Mourinho was involved in an angry row with striker Costa and lost captain John Terry to injury ahead of Sunday’s Premier League trip to Tottenham Hotspur, thanks to the appalling Sammy Ofer Stadium pitch in Haifa.
Having already seen Ramires fall victim to the surface in training on Monday night, Mourinho even acted as groundsman to replace divots after Cahill’s opening goal in an attempt to stop both sets of players suffering injuries. But it was not enough to stop Terry hurting his right ankle in the second half.

Dynamo Kiev’s shock victory in Porto means Chelsea have not yet qualified for the knockout stage of the competition, despite moving to the top of Group G.
A draw with his former club would be enough for Chelsea to go through, but Mourinho has plenty to consider before the game against Porto at Stamford Bridge.
Most pressing will be to get the best out of last season’s top scorer once again, having insisted that his fall-out with Costa was sorted out at half-time with “kisses and cuddles”. Mourinho had lost his patience with Costa for not being in the six-yard box in the victory over Norwich City and the flashpoint in Israel was over a similar incident.

The Portuguese screamed at Costa shortly before half-time after he had failed to get anywhere near an Eden Hazard cross into the six-yard box. But the 27-year-old gave as good as he got, shouting back and gesticulating at his manager.
Costa refused the attempts of ­Oscar to calm him down, but ­reappeared after the break and played the entire second half. It was noticeable that Costa stood by the touchline just before the final ­whistle was blown and then headed straight down the tunnel without acknowledging Mourinho or shaking hands with his team-mates or his opponents.
Mourinho had criticised the pitch in Haifa ahead of kick-off and the surface quickly got worse with one big hole appearing near his ­technical area and several smaller divots giving the impression of mole hills covering the surface.


Maccabi Tel Aviv immediately found their feet on the pitch and should really have taken the lead in just the second minute. Ben Haim found Dor Peretz unmarked in the penalty area, but the midfielder headed the cross wastefully over the bar – much to the relief of Chelsea goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.
Despite the difficult conditions, Chelsea provided two moments of quality from which they almost opened the scoring as Oscar back-heeled the ball into the path of ­César Azpilcueta and the defender curled a shot just wide. Cesc ­Fàbregas then saw a ­wonderful chip fall just over the crossbar.
It did not take long for Chelsea to take the lead, however, as Cahill got the better of the bumpy pitch and Tel Aviv goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic in the 21st minute.
Rajkovic made a brilliant save to tip the central defender’s header from Willian’s corner on to the post, but Cahill reacted quickest to then poke the rebound into the net.

Rather than celebrating, Mourinho took the opportunity of a break in play to walk on to the pitch and replace all the divots he could ­before the match restarted.
Although they remained just one goal up at the break, Chelsea’s task was made easier when their former defender Ben Haim was red carded shortly before half-time for a wild kick on Costa. Ben Haim seemed shocked that he was sent off by Spanish referee Alberto Undiano Mallenco for the challenge, but it was stupid and vicious.

While Mourinho dealt with Costa in the dressing-room at half-time after their public fall-out, he sent out substitute striker Loïc Rémy to warm-up during the break.
That led to doubts over whether or not Costa would come back out for the second half, but he did and the man who Mourinho has defended on so many occasions was quickly upsetting people again.
Costa exchanged pushes and glares with home defender Eli Dasa, who had forced Chelsea goalkeeper Begovic into a good save after being played onside by a dozing Hazard.

Rajkovic produced another good save to stop Hazard’s volley and then displayed superb reflexes to get in the way of Azpilicueta’s effort at the back post.
Mourinho made his first change with just over 20 minutes remaining, but it was Hazard, rather than Costa, who was taken off and ­replaced by Pedro Rodríguez. Terry was then forced off on a stretcher after suffering an injury to his right ankle, with Zouma taking over.
Terry will now face a fight to be fit in time to face Spurs, but Chelsea did not miss him too much as they cruised through the final stages.

Willian maintained his incredible set-piece record this season by ­scoring his sixth goal from a free-kick that extinguished any fears of a shock comeback from the hosts.
Oscar then added another goal with a rare header from a Baba Rahman cross and Zouma got on the scoresheet in stoppage time with a towering header.

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Mail:

Maccabi Tel Aviv 0-4 Chelsea
Gary Cahill, Willian, Oscar and Kurt Zouma put their side in Group G driving seat as former defender Tal Ben Haim sees red for late challenge on Diego Costa

By Matt Barlow for the Daily Mail 

It was all handshakes, smiles and high-fives by the end but Chelsea have lost the knack of doing anything the easy way.
In such tempestuous times, even a routine win against a team reduced to 10 men before half-time and without a Champions League win, or even a goal from open play, unfolded in the shadow of a brand new storm.
Gary Cahill opened the scoring against Maccabi Tel Aviv and Tal Ben Haim was sent off for a brainless hack on Diego Costa.

Jose Mourinho’s team were coasting along when a furious row that erupted between the manager and Costa, in the final seconds of the first half, saw them both disappear down the tunnel at half-time in furious moods.
Mourinho claimed they kissed and made up, but whatever happened it unsettled Chelsea and encouraged Maccabi, who were revived.
For half an hour they threatened to level, until Willian came to the rescue by converting his sixth free-kick of the season.
On an awful pitch there was also an injury to John Terry, who was carried off having rolled an ankle, sparking concerns ahead of Sunday’s derby against Tottenham, before Oscar scored the third. Kurt Zouma, on as a substitute for Terry, headed in the fourth goal, but Dynamo Kiev have complicated matters in Group G with a surprise win in Porto.
Chelsea move to the top of the pool but are not certain of their place in the last 16, with one to play at home to Porto.

Mourinho was grumbling about the state of the pitch before kick-off. It was lumpy, slow and soon cutting up badly. One turn by Willian carved a huge slice out of the turf.
Together with a noisy home crowd, it made for an uncomfortable opening spell. Unable to trust the surface, Chelsea were edgy on the ball while Maccabi were quick and aggressive, seeking to pounce on errors.
Dor Peretz headed narrowly over, Eran Zahavi caused panic with a mazy run and Eli Dasa sliced a good chance wide. All this within the first five minutes, but the Londoners took the lead on 20 minutes from a corner delivered by Willian.
Predrag Rajkovic made a splendid save from Cahill’s initial header, powerful and directed down after leaping high above Nosa Igiebor. Rajkovic pushed it on to a post but the rebound spilled to Cahill who was quick to react and boot it over the line. As his team celebrated, the Chelsea manager strolled on to the pitch to stamp down some of the larger divots. Just making a point.
Mourinho had made four changes to the team which beat Norwich, three of them in the back four, where only Terry remained. Oscar came in for Pedro and Eden Hazard moved back out on to the left wing.

Maccabi lost intensity after going behind and Chelsea produced fluent football, with Cesc Fabregas increasingly influential alongside Nemanja Matic, who prowled the midfield with some of the swagger which defined his game last season.
Willian and Hazard dribbled and jinked, Oscar flicked and twisted on the ball and Costa produced a bicycle kick which veered wide.
Ben Haim made life easier for his former club by stupidly hacking down Costa in midfield.
The experienced Israeli, who eight years ago to the day was in tandem with Terry for Chelsea against Derby, seemed surprised when the referee pulled out a red card, but it was a ridiculous challenge, an old-fashioned hack which wiped out Costa as he shielded the ball.
With Maccabi down to 10, it ought to have been plain sailing but cue the bust-up between Costa and Mourinho as the whistle went for half-time. Loic Remy spent the interval warming up but Costa returned after the break and Remy remained on the bench.

Perhaps the flashpoint unsettled Chelsea, because full back Dasa forced Asmir Begovic into the first save of the second half, and Cesar Azpilicueta made his own goalkeeper stretch for a header which momentarily appeared destined for his own net.
Azpilicueta forced a fine save from Rajkovic, the keeper at the other end, when he probably ought to have scored, before Begovic denied Zahavi on the counter-attack with a fingertip save.
Suddenly the group whipping boys were looking dangerous, but they could not find an equaliser and Willian settled Chelsea with another of his free-kicks, this one curled delicately over the defensive wall from just outside the box.
Two headers late in the game completed the scoring. Oscar struck from a cross by Baba Rahman and centre back Zouma nodded in from a corner in stoppage time.
Costa survived for the full 90 minutes but was thwarted by Rajkovic in the closing seconds and could not find a goal.
When the whistle went Costa was standing by the tunnel. He headed straight off the field and was the first player on the bus.

MACCABI TEL AVIV (4-2-3-1): Rajkovic 6; Dasa 6, Ben Haim I 3, Carlos Garcia 5, Ben Haroush 5; Alberman 6.5 (Azulay 85mins), Peretz 6; Ben Haim II 6 (Ben Basat 80), Igiebor 5, Zahavi 6 (Itzhaki 89); Rikan 5
Subs not used: Lifshitz, Tibi, Mitrovic, Vermouth
Sent off: Ben Haim I 40

CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Begovic 6; Azpilicueta 5, Cahill 7, Terry 6.5 (Zouma 72, 6), Baba 6: Fabregas 7, Matic 6.5; Oscar 6, Willian 7.5 (Remy 79), Hazard 6.5 (Pedro 69, 6); Costa 6
Subs not used: Blackman, Ivanovic, Mikel, Loftus-Cheek

Goal: Cahill 20, Willian 73, Oscar 77, Zouma 90
Booked: Matic, Fabregas 
Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco (Spain)
Attendance: 29,121

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Mirror:
   
Maccabi Tel-Aviv 0-4 Chelsea: Blues remain on course for last 16 after running riot in Israel
 
By Adrian Kajumba
 
Gary Cahill, Willian, Oscar and Kurt Zouma scored to earn the Blues a win that puts them in pole position to reach the knockout stages

Chelsea ended the night top of their Champions League group but still endured the sort of bumpy night that summed up their season.
Gary Cahill, Willian, Oscar and Kurt Zouma scored to earn Chelsea a win that kept them on course for the knockout stages.
But, in keeping with this campaign when little has gone smoothly for the Blues, Jose Mourinho still ended the night with problems on his plate.
The first, and possibly biggest, was his public bust-up with striker Diego Costa just before half-time which overshadowed this eventually comfortable win.
Captain John Terry was then carried off on a stretcher in the second half.
And Dynamo Kyiv’s shock win in Porto means Chelsea’s bid for qualification will go right down to the wire.

A home draw against his former club Porto in two weeks will be enough to send Mourinho’s men into the last 16.
But the way this season has gone for Chelsea, Mourinho will know he can’t take anything for granted.
Despite all their domestic woes, Mourinho talked up his and Chelsea’s chances of another against-the-odds Champions League triumph pre-match and early qualification was up for grabs if other results went their way.
In normal circumstances, the Blues would be expected to have few problems doing their bit against pointless group whipping boys Maccabi.
But little has been normal about the west Londoners’ season. Their failure to win a Champions League away game for a year was another cause for concern.

Maccabi boss Slavisa Jokanovic – not one of the six players who swerved Chelsea’s 2001 visit to Israel due to security fears following 9/11 – copied Mourinho’s recent reference to Mission Impossible in the build up.
He was aiming to guide his side to victory in their last two group games so they could sneak into the Europa League. Chelsea hadn’t read his script.
Once they rode out the early storm from the hosts and got used to their awful divot-ridden
pitch, Mourinho’s men silenced ­Maccabi’s boisterous fans in the 20th minute when Cahill reacted quickest to tap in the rebound after his initial header from Willan’s corner was saved.
The surface was causing Chelsea more problems than Maccabi, whose task got much harder when ex-Chelsea defender Tal Ben Haim was sent off for a wild hack on Costa.

Costa ended the half in an angry row with Mourinho, who was fuming the striker wasn’t busting a gut to get on the end of an Eden Hazard flick across goal.
Oscar stepped in to calm the striker as he headed down the tunnel and, when Loic Remy was put through his paces during the break, it looked like Costa might be coming off. He did, however, reappear for the second half.
The goalkeepers took over once the action resumed. Asmir Begovic produced sharp stops to deny Eli Dasa and Eran Zahavi. In between Predrag Rajkovic produced heroics to keep out Hazard and Cesar Azpilicueta.
Terry was then carried off but Willian bent in his sixth successful free-kick of the season a minute later before Oscar and Zouma powered in headers to wrap up victory.

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Sun:

Maccabi Tel Aviv 0 Chelsea 4

By ANDREW DILLON

CHELSEA won again — miracles do happen in the Holy Land after all.
But a four-goal romp still could not fully mask the sense of simmering anger and frustration which seems to hide just below the surface of every match they play at the moment.
Boss Jose Mourinho finally lost patience with his striker Diego Costa, 27.

And the Portuguese let rip at the forward in full view of the pitch he had also criticised before the game.
The quickest Costa moved all night was when he darted down the tunnel without shaking hands with his manager or his team-mates at the final whistle.

And there is despair as skipper John Terry rolled his right ankle and had to be carried off on a stretcher.
The injury makes the defender a serious doubt for the big showdown with in-form Tottenham at White Hart Lane in just four days’ time.
Anyone who thought goals from Gary Cahill, Willian, Oscar and sub Kurt Zouma would mean the troubles of this most turbulent season are behind them, does not know Chelsea very well. Despite the goalfest, hopeful comments about Terry and news that Loic Remy’s wife is about to have a baby, there is still something not quite right at Chelsea.
The manager has stuck up repeatedly for Costa, whose most notable act to date, this season, has been a three-game ban for violent conduct while scoring only four goals.
One of those came last Saturday against Norwich City but the underlying exasperation with his £32million buy from Atletico Madrid exploded into life with a dramatic altercation between the pair at the end of the first half.

Even Chelsea fans have been growing fed-up with his lack of success in front of goal in his second season in English football, amid rumours that Costa wants to go home. Just minutes before he scored the winning goal at Stamford Bridge last weekend there were cries of ‘lazy’ from the terraces.
And that must have been what Mourinho was thinking too last night when he turned on his marquee signing.
Eden Hazard flicked the ball into an empty space just yards from a gaping goal where Costa should have been to tap in for 2-0 and a comfortable night seconds before half-time.
Instead, he was standing on the edge of the box motionless and got a long-distance coating from the Chelsea dugout for his trouble.
Mourinho also hit out at the state of the pitch before kick- off in a TV interview.
He even marched on during the break in play after Cahill scored the first goal to stamp down some divots a few yards inside the touchline.

From Holy Land to Holey Land — tempers were fraying despite a solid performance from Chelsea.
Even the sending off of former Blues defender Tal Ben Haim, 33, could not dampen the sense of bubbling friction.
Ben Haim got a straight red for hacking down Costa needlessly and aggressively four minutes before the half- time whistle.
Pole-axed Costa did not get up and punch his lights out, he played it cool.
Maybe we should have realised then something was not quite right.
He certainly looked up for it when Mourinho berated him from the dugout for refusing to move — angrily gesticulating back at his boss. Diego was still fuming when he raced up the tunnel after Mourinho at half-time and it was a toss up who would make it out alive for the second half.
The clash between player and manager overshadowed a performance by Chelsea which should have done their confidence a power of good.
Instead, everyone is wondering whether Costa will be axed for Spurs on Sunday despite claims by the management that the bust-up was settled quickly with a kiss at the interval.

And it means that Mourinho is now forced into a rethink.
With Terry likely to miss out, it means youngster Zouma will partner Cahill in defence and deny him the chance to play as a defensive midfielder, a role he excelled at in last season’s Capital One Cup final victory over Tottenham.
Despite the odd breakthrough, Chelsea were in control from start to finish.
They were helped by Tel Aviv being reduced to ten men for the whole of the second half.
Willian, provider of the corner from which Cahill scored the opener in the 20th minute, got his sixth of the season from a free-kick when he curled in another beauty on 73 minutes to lift the gloom as Terry was being carted off.
Oscar headed in No 3 with just 13 minutes to go and substitute Zouma made it four in stoppage time.

DREAM TEAM RATINGS

MACCABI TEL AVIV: Rajkovic 6, Dasa 5, Ben Haim II (Ben Basat 80, 5) 6, Garcia 5, Ben Harush 6, Igiebor 7, Alberman 7 (Azulay 85, 6), Peretz 6, Ben Haim 3, Rikan 7, Zahavi 6 (Itzhaki 89, 5). Subs not used: Lifshitz, Tibi, Mitrovic, Vermouth. Sent off: Ben Haim.

CHELSEA: Begovic 7, Azpilicueta 7, Cahill 7, Terry 6 (Zouma 72, 6), Rahman 8, Matic 6, FABREGAS STAR MAN 9, Willian 7 (Remy 79, 5), Oscar 8, Hazard 7 (Pedro 69, 6), Costa 7. Subs not used: Ivanovic, Mikel, Blackman, Loftus-Cheek. Booked: Matic, Fabregas.
(Dream Team ratings are compiled using Opta data)

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Express:

Maccabi Tel Aviv - 0 Chelsea 4: Cahill, Willian, Oscar and Zouma send Blues top of Group G

JOSE MOURINHO had a blazing row with striker Diego Costa at half time in Israel. But the rest of his team saved their fire to blow away Maccabi.

By Tony Banks in Haifa

Chelsea last night did what they had to do in Israel. But Dynamo Kiev’s unexpected win at Porto means that Group G will go to the final game on December 9 before the two qualifiers are known.
It was not an easy night for Mourinho’s men, on a poor pitch in Haifa. Goals from Gary Cahill, Willian and Oscar made it all look much more comfortable than it actually was.
Mourinho blew his top at Costa just before half-time for bad positional play in front of goal – and the furious striker gave as good as he got, despite Oscar and John Terry trying to calm things down.
Amazingly Costa appeared for the second half – but his team did the job anyway.

Mourinho, below, made four changes from the team that beat Norwich on Saturday, with Kurt Zouma, Branislav Ivanovic, Kenedy and Pedro all dropping out at the Sammy Ofer Stadium.
But he fielded a strong side, with Cesar Azpilicueta, Gary Cahill, Baba Rahman and Oscar all returning to the line-up as Chelsea aimed at their first away European win in a year.
Chelsea had beaten Maccabi, who have lost all five of their Group G games, 4-0 at Stamford Bridge in September – but Mourinho warned his team against complacency in the build-up.
The Chelsea manager was unhappy about a soft-looking pitch before kick-off and his side had a lucky escape after only two minutes, when Dor Peretz headed over from six yards.

Maccabi, despite their wretched record, tore eagerly into Chelsea from the off but Mourinho’s team began to regain control, as Azpilicueta shot wide and then Cesc Fabregas chipped just over. As quality began to tell, they broke through as Gary Cahill met Willian’s corner. Goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic did well to push the ball on to the post but only back to the Chelsea man, who stabbed it home for the goal that his team needed to settle the early nerves.
Immediately, Mourinho was on to the pitch to tread down a divot with his expensively-shod foot.
Willian, by some distance Chelsea’s best player so far this season, was a constant worry to the Maccabi defence with his pace but Costa blazed an overhead kick wide.
But then with four minutes to go to the break, defender Tal Ben Haim, playing against his old team, was sent off for a wild hack at the Chelsea striker.

Costa as usual was right at the centre of things – but he got a rollicking from Mourinho as the half-time whistle blew for not being in the right place as Hazard flicked the ball on in the six-yard box. The Spaniard gave a volley back. Chelsea were lucky again when Eli Dasa popped up unmarked at the far post and only a fine block by goalkeeper Asmir Begovic prevented an equaliser.
Maccabi’s 10 men were far from giving up.
And as Costa missed his kick after Azpilicueta pulled the ball back, it was still all far too uncomfortable for Mourinho’s men, on a night when they should have been in total control. Hazard almost added a second when he burst through but once again Rajkovic produced a fine save.

But then at the other end, as Maccabi broke, it was Begovic who once again brilliantly preserved Chelsea lead as he tipped Eran Zahavi’s shot round the post.
But, as ever this season, it was Willian who came to the rescue, curling in the vital second goal with a lovely free kick. It was his his sixth goal of the season – all of them from free-kicks.

Maccabi had finally run out of steam and, as Baba Rahman produced a fine cross from the left, Oscar headed home from point-blank range before Zouma rounded matters off in stoppage time.

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Begovic; Azpilicueta, ­Cahill, Terry (Zouma, 72), Rahman; Fabregas, Matic; Willian (Remy, 79), Oscar, Hazard (Pedro, 69); Costa. Booked: Matic, Fabregas. Goals: Cahill 20, Willian 73, Oscar 77, Zouma 90. Next Up: ­Tottenham (a), Sun PL.

Maccabi Tel-Aviv (4-3-3): Rajkovic; Dasa, Ben Haim, Garcia, Ben Harush; Igiebor, Alberman (Azulay 85), Peretz; Ben Haim II (Ben Basat, 80), Zahavi (Itzhaki 89), Rikan. Sent off: Ben Haim 41.
Referee: A Mallenco (Spain).

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Star:

Maccabi 0 Chelsea 4: Blues move closer to Champions League last 16 after routine win
JOSE MOURINHO had a blazing row with striker Diego Costa but Chelsea did what they had to do.


By George Scott

Dynamo Kiev’s unexpected win at Porto means that the group will go to the final game on December 9 before the two qualifiers are known.
It was not an easy night for Mourinho’s men, on a poor pitch in Haifa.
Goals from Gary Cahill, Willian, Oscar and Kurt Zouma made it look more comfortable than it was.

Mourinho fielded a strong side, with Cesar Azpilicueta, Cahill, Baba Rahman and Oscar returning.
Chelsea beat the Israeli side, who had lost all four of their Group G games, 4-0 at Stamford Bridge in September.
But Mourinho had warned against complacency and was fuming about the soft heavy pitch.

Chelsea had a lucky escape after two minutes when Dor Peretz headed over from six yards.
Maccabi, despite their dismal record, tore into Chelsea from the off but the visitors began to regain control.
Azpilicueta shot wide, and Cesc Fabregas chipped just over.
As Chelsea’s quality began to tell, they broke through as Cahill met Willian’s corner.
Goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic did well to push the ball onto a post but only back to Cahill, who prodded home.
Chelsea were dominating, with Eden Hazard lively and Fabregas orchestrating play.

Willian, by some distance Chelsea’s best player this season, was a constant threat with his pace.
Four minutes before the break, Maccabi defender Tal Ben Haim, playing against his old team, was sent off for a wild, stupid hack at Costa.
Ben Haim tried to claim he had been elbowed but replays showed the decision was right.
Mourinho blew his top at Costa just before half-time for not being in the right place in front of goal.

The furious striker gave as good back, despite Oscar and John Terry trying to calm things down.
Amazingly, the striker appeared for the second half. Chelsea were lucky when Eli Dasa popped up unmarked at the far post and only a fine block by goalkeeper Asmir Begovic prevented an equaliser.
Maccabi’s 10 men were far from giving up.
Hazard almost added a second when he burst through, but once again Rajkovic produced a fine save.

Then Maccabi broke and it was Begovic who again brilliantly preserved Chelsea’s lead as he tipped Eran Zahavi’s shot round the post.
As ever, it was Willian who came to the rescue, curling in the vital second goal with a lovely free-kick – his sixth goal of the season and all of them from set-pieces.
That was the end of Maccabi’s resitance and Chelsea added a third when Oscar headed home from a fine Rahman cross.
Zouma headed Chelsea’s fourth direct from a corner.

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