Chelsea secured their first Premier League win in seven games as they beat Bolton 1-0. The Blues worst run of form for more than ten years was brought to an end, as they continue to pursue Manchester United in the race for the Premier League title.
There was little evidence of their former glories, as Chelsea were made to fight for every ball, had their normal flowing play disrupted and they will probably consider themselves fortunate to have secured all three points.
Chelsea
Florent Malouda was on hand to score the only goal of the game, and his first goal in the league for two months, which was enough to send the Blues back to fourth place in the table. The Blues are now four points adrift of leaders Manchester United and City, and two points behind Arsenal, who beat them 3-1 a few days previously. In what could conspire to be one of the closest title races for many years, Chelsea, who top the league by five points a few weeks ago, could already be home and dry had they not endured such a woeful spell of form.
On a rain soaked pitch, Chelsea again struggled to find their free flowing game and they failed to secure one shot on target during a miserable first half. Bolton on the other hand were competitive and strong in the tackle, showing a resilience that the hosts would have welcomed themselves during the last few weeks.
Bolton started to look like the side more likely to score and some desperate defending from John Terry and a few near misses denied the visitors. A section of the home crowd booed their team off at half time, growing increasingly frustrated by the lacklustre display.
After a slow start to the second half, Chelsea suddenly sprang into life and a fantastic pass from Lampard, who has been badly missed this season, set Drogba free and he hit the inside of the post with his shot.
The Blues could sense a goal and they increased the pressure on the visitors, which finally paid off in the 61st minute as Malouda scored his goal, which was followed by jubilant celebrations by both players and fans.
Bolton, determined as ever, made every attempt to score an equaliser, on another day they may have been successful, some desperate defending and a goal line clearance from Drogba was all that spared Chelsea, who did have opportunities to extend their lead late on in the game, and Essien had a goal ruled out for offside.
The win just about keeps Chelsea in the title race and will ease the pressure on manager Carlo Ancelotti, although the performance overall did leave much to be desired.
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