Sunderland 2 Chelsea 4:FRANK LAMPARD is widely regarded as the complete midfielder but he was given a run for his money by an unlikely team-mate last night. Stationed unusually deep, the imperious Nicolas Anelka inspired an important win for Chelsea courtesy of a stream of sublime passes complemented by the odd tackle and a late goal.
After a deceptively bright start, Sunderland floundered in the face of Anelka’s strength and attacking vision as Carlo Ancelotti’s initially defensive and wobbly team gained a measure of revenge for their biggest humiliation of the season.
David Miliband was last night “‘unveiled” as Sunderland’s latest board member, the former foreign secretary joining as a non-executive vice-chairman. Sitting alongside Ellis Short, the Sunderland owner, and the chairman, Niall Quinn, he did not have long to wait before cheering the first goal. Despite operating out of position at left-back, Phil Bardsley has arguably been Steve Bruce’s player of the season.
Bardsley showed off his overlapping credentials by receiving the ball on the halfway line and advancing unimpeded before cutting in and sidestepping Mikel John Obi with unexpected ease. All that remained was for Bardsley to direct a dipping right foot shot beyond Petr Cech from the edge of the area. Chelsea were still evidently smarting from the autumnal 3-0 home defeat by Sunderland and swiftly won a penalty.
Were Miliband still in his old job he would have been embroiled in the Egypt crisis but instead found himself watching Bruce’s Egyptian right-winger Ahmed Elmohamady penalised for seeming to climb on top of Ashley Cole. Lampard stepped forward to score from the spot, and, soon, Ancelotti’s side were ahead.
Anelka was impressing at the apex of Chelsea’s midfield diamond and his astutely-timed pass enabled Solomon Kalou to direct the ball into the empty net after Gordon had dashed off his line.
Undaunted Sunderland tore back into Chelsea and Mikel’s foul on Elmohamady brought them a free-kick 20 yards out on the right hand side of the area. Kieran Richardson’s time on Wearside has all too often been synonymous with under-achievement but, deployed in an attacking midfield role here he looked renascent. Richardson also delivered that dead ball quite brilliantly, his low left-foot strike curving in at the near post and leaving Cech rooted to the spot.
Like Stephane Sessegnon – Sunderland’s new €8.2 million Benin international, freshly acquired from Paris St Germain – Richardson was floating in “the hole” behind Asamoah Gyan and the pair’s high energy movement ruffled Ancelotti’s defence. Certainly John Terry and company had cause to be grateful Anelka was reminding everyone Jordan Henderson is not a holding midfielder.
With Fernando Torres and David Luiz now on the Stamford Bridge books – if absent here – the future suddenly seems shrouded for Anelka, and possibly even Didier Drogba, but it is surely not beyond the bounds of possibility the Frenchman could be reinvented as an excitingly accomplished attacking midfielder.
Once Sulley Muntari is fit Sunderland’s Europa League challenge will shortly be augmented by the on-loan Inter midfielder. It will be interesting to see where Muntari fits in because, as the second half unfolded, Lampard highlighted his importance to Chelsea by repeatedly second-guessing Henderson while showing Sunderland’s prodigy what being a complete midfielder entails.
Chelsea were ascendant. During a desperate goalmouth scramble, Steed Malbranque chested clear just as Kalou seemed set to score. With Gordon doing well to repel another Lampard strike and Michael Essien coming more into things, Sunderland were clinging on by their fingernails.
With Anelka tormenting Sunderland they lost any semblance of a grip on the game when the fall-out from a disputed corner saw Gordon parry Lampard’s shot and, courtesy of a deflection, John Terry volleyed home the rebound.
There was a moment of late tension when Richardson and Branislav Invanovic touched foreheads and were booked but Anelka could not be overshadowed and a deft finish supplied Chelsea’s fourth.
SUNDERLAND: Gordon, Onuoha (Cook 87), Bramble, Ferdinand, Bardsley, Elmohamady, Henderson, Sessegnon, Malbranque (Colback 81), Richardson, Gyan. Subs Not Used: Mignolet, Mensah, Angeleri, Riveros, Reed. Booked: Richardson.
CHELSEA: Cech, Bosingwa (Ferreira 90), Ivanovic, Terry, Cole, Lampard, Mikel (Ramires 77), Essien, Anelka, Drogba, Kalou (Malouda 81). Subs Not Used: Turnbull, Bruma, McEachran, Sala. Booked: Drogba, Ivanovic.
Referee: Mark Halsey (Lancashire).
