Chelsea 2–0 Tottenham
Chelsea lifted their first trophy of Jose Mourinho's return to Stamford Bridge with a dogged win over Tottenham – and a sign of what may yet be to come.
They had more cunning and guile than a Tottenham side who seldom threatened their goal in a game that was largely forgettable – just don't tell the celebrating Blues' fans that.
Mourinho caused a surprise or two pre-match, with the naming of a team that tore-up his preferred formation.
Chelsea started 3-5-2, with the unexpected presence of Gary Cahill in midfield – far from a like-for-like stand-in for the suspended Nemanja Matic.
The 10th minute had not yet arrived when Cesc Fabregas gave away a free kick on the edge of the Blues box – sliding into Harry Kane.
The resultant set piece saw Christian Eriksen rock Petr Cech's bar – to send early shockwaves through the Chelsea support.
The first half was more than a little stolid – flattened to a large extent by Chelsea's packing out of midfield, but also by their unfamiliarity with the formation.
Spurs seemed to have the better opportunities – looking more ambitious on the counter, and finding cracks and fissures in the Blues' defence. But they were unable to make those chances count, thanks to the lack of any incisive final pass.
And then, bang on half time, Chelsea found that little bit of added character they needed -and it came from a familiar source.
Branislav Ivanovic won a free kick in the final third on the right – hoodwinking Nacer Chadli into giving something away he really had no right to give.
Willian took the free kick, which sailed into the box – deflecting off Eric Dier straight to John Terry.
The Blues' captain took it head-on – toe poking the ball into the back of the net, via a deflection off a white shirt.
As the rain soaked the second half, Chelsea looked to extend their advantage.
And, 11 minutes after the restart, they did just that.
Fabregas threaded one of those perfect passes through to Diego Costa, who took on Kyle Walker before shooting on goal.
The ball, via a tight angle, took a deflection off Walker's boot before passing Lloris.
Chelsea played out the rest of the game, for the most part well on top.
One down, two to go. And with Liverpool's defeat of Manchester City in the Premier League today, another one of those just edged a little closer.
