Malouda eases the anxiety

Chelsea 1 Bolton 0:THE NIGHTMARE is by no means over for Carlo Ancelotti but at least the cold sweats might not have gripped him last night. Still, having said his faltering Chelsea team needed to "wake up" in light of their dismal recent run, he watched them sleepwalk their way through the first half of what was a must-win game.

When the boos grumbled around Stamford Bridge at half-time, it was easy to fear the worst for Ancelotti, in spite of the club’s desire to stand four-square behind him. His team looked creatively bankrupt, their confidence seemingly in tatters.

Yet a second-half revival cut through the tension. Florent Malouda’s tap-in goal was worth its weight in gold as it propelled Chelsea back up into fourth position in this most open of Premier League title races.

There had been wobbles from the defending champions beforehand and there was time for some more, but they managed to get the job done. More convincing performances can wait for the weeks ahead. This was a night when the result was everything.

The comments in the matchday programme had focused on 2010 as a whole, with Ancelotti thanking supporters for a “fantastic” year, one he would “never forget” and chief executive Ron Gourlay delving for further hyperbole. It felt strangely out of step, however, with the pre-match mood, in which nerviness and a sense of foreboding held sway.

Bolton arrived with confidence aplenty and their game plan involved keeping Chelsea at bay for as long as possible and waiting for the tensions all around to bubble over.

Not that Bolton sought to park the bus. Owen Coyle played with two up front and two genuine wide men, while his back four pressed to hold a high line. The visitors settled the quicker and might have nicked the lead. John Terry, one of the few Chelsea players in any sort of form, was required to make last-ditch interventions to deny Kevin Davies and then Johan Elmander, while Matthew Taylor had the first-half’s only clear chance on 23 minutes. After Jose Bosingwa had failed to get any distance on a clearing header from a cross, Taylor took a touch and dragged a low shot past the far post.

Chelsea groped for ideas and inspiration in the final third. It was not pretty. With Gary Cahill standing up to Didier Drogba and the inside forwards Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda peripheral, Ancelotti endured that helpless feeling on the touchline.

Chelsea’s first-half efforts were summed up by a Drogba free-kick, close to the left-hand corner of the area. He ballooned it high and so wide it rolled out for a throw-in on the far side.

Chelsea stepped on to the front foot as the first half wore on, but they were one-paced and laboured. Jussi Jaaskelainen was virtually a spectator in the Bolton goal. Branislav Ivanovic picked up his fifth booking of the season for a foul on Elmander and he will miss the visit of Aston Villa on Sunday and Chelsea were booed off at the interval.

Chelsea were desperate for something to galvanise them. Out of nothing, Frank Lampard provided it, with a marvellous 49th-minute through ball inside Paul Robinson to set Drogba clean through. The striker took on the shot first time but, to his frustration, he watched it beat Jaaskelainen and rebound off the far post.

Then, it happened. Essien bulldozed through two challenges and rolled the ball through for Drogba, who looked suspiciously offside; Bolton’s players would rage at the absence of a flag. Drogba squared low across the box and Malouda, of all of the out-of-sorts Chelsea players, arrived to stab home. His frenzied celebrations highlighted the relief.

Bolton were not finished. Sam Ricketts blazed a glorious chance over the crossbar and Stuart Holden shouted loudly for a penalty when his shot hit Terry high up on the arm.

Holden’s head did not drop. He forced Petr Cech into a finger-tip save, having arrived to meet Ricketts’ cross and, from the ensuing corner, when Cech flapped, Drogba had to run the ball off the line from Elmander.

CHELSEA: Cech, Bosingwa (Ferreira 90),Ivanovic, Terry, Cole, Ramires, Essien, Lampard, Anelka (Kalou 90), Drogba, Malouda. Subs not used: Turnbull, Van Aanholt, Bruma, Kakuta, McEachran. Booked: Ivanovic.

BOLTON: Jaaskelainen, Ricketts, Cahill, Knight, Robinson, Moreno (Klasnic 72), Holden (Mark Davies 82), Muamba, Taylor (Petrov 78), Kevin Davies, Elmander. Subs not used: Bogdan, Blake, Alonso. Booked: Taylor.

Referee: Mike Jones (Cheshire).