While both Chelsea and Sunderland won their opening fixtures, few would have expected Sunderland to hold the Blues in their second outing this season.
Chelsea Dominated
In fact Chelsea dominated proceedings throughout the match and were on the attack right from the first minute.
They were quick in moving the ball around, creating space for shooting opportunities from distance.
Unfortunately for Chelsea, the efforts of Frank Lampard, Michael Essien, Michael Ballack and Deco were all wildly inaccurate.
Darren Bent Scored Again
Then Sunderland scored, completely against the run of play.
On the 18th minute, Sunderland’s £10m new signing Darren Bent, who scored on his debut last Saturday against Fulham, pushed down Sunderland’s left and crossed for Kenwyne Jones.
As Jones’ blocked shot fell nicely back to Bent, he showed terrific strength and composure to hold off the challenge from makeshift Chelsea centre-back Branislav Ivanovic and slotted the ball in low at Petr Cech’s near post.
Chelsea Momentarily Held by Cattermole
After Bent got himself out of a group of hysterical Sunderland fans who ecstatically mobbed and kissed their new hero in celebration, Chelsea were eager to respond.
This was the second match in a row, after Hull City at home on Saturday, that Chelsea fell behind and they were keen to make it two in a row for turning around deficits.
While some of Chelsea’s midfield dominance was cancelled out by the sweeping presence of Lee Cattermole, new signing for Sunderland who was rumoured to have been a target of Liverpool, the quality in Ancelotti’s new diamond midfield formation meant that it was inevitable that Chelsea would create chances.
Ballack, and then José Bosingwa the Chelsea right-back, were both denied by the outstanding Cattermole as Sunderland held on to their lead until half-time.
Chelsea's Second-Half Resurgence
But it was their second-half performance that truly lived up to Chelsea’s title expectations. Only minutes after the interval Chelsea were given a succession of corners where they executed a well-worked training ground routine.
While to the unsuspecting they would appear as bad corners that failed to clear the near-post defender, in fact Chelsea’s corner routine was brilliantly conceived and lethally executed.
Chelsea's Corner Routine
The ball would be swung in at the near post while a Chelsea player would make a diagonal run and flick the ball onto the far post. The Sunderland defense, duly unsettled by the modified trajectory of the ball, failed to pick up Michael Ballack who lurked at the far post and stroked the ball in to match his league goal tally last season of one.
After their equaliser Chelsea went all out. As Didier Drogba was felled in the area Frank Lampard made no mistake to convert the penalty. It took his Chelsea goal tally to 132, matching that of Chelsea legend Jimmy Greaves.
Lampard Matched Scoring Record; Deco Shone in Midfield
While Florent Malouda, the Chelsea and France winger, experienced a renaissance of form under Guus Hiddink at the end of last season, as Carlo Ancelotti came in it looked like it was going to be Deco’s turn to shine this season. The Portuguese midfielder, heavily linked to Inter Milan over the summer, capped a virtuoso display in midfield with a darting run and an angled drive that went in off the far post on the 70th minute to complete Chelsea’s comeback.
Depth of Ancelotti's Squad
Ancelotti must have been very happy with this performance. And the depth of the Chelsea squad was plain to see as, sensing that the game was won, Ancelotti sent on Florent Malouda, Andriy Shevchenko and Daniel Sturridge, the last one a 20-year-old striker, leaving the world unsure whether he intended to ease or up the pressure on the tiring Sunderland defense.
Chelsea’s title credentials would be cemented after this result; and the depth of their squad would certainly have a crucial part to play should Chelsea win a third Premier League title in six years.
