Anelka is Chelsea’s hero

The 3-0 defeat of West Brom was Chelsea’s 10th successive victory on the road in the league, equalling the record Tottenham set in 1959. By Stuart James.

No one at Chelsea could accuse Nicolas Anelka of making false promises. In the aftermath of the Champions League final, when the Frenchman bristled with frustration over the lack of opportunities he had been given to play as a central striker under Avram Grant, he made a vow: “From next season I insist I will no longer be the little newcomer.” Twelve Premier League starts and as many goals later, Anelka looks to have kept his word.

Indeed, Luiz Felipe Scolari, who revealed last month that he sought divine intervention when Didier Drogba suffered a knee injury, could be forgiven for wondering whether Anelka’s form, rather than the Ivorian’s subsequent recovery, is evidence his prayers have been answered. The two goals the forward plundered against West Bromwich Albion took his tally to eight in four league games and prompted John Terry to claim Anelka is “in the best form of his career”.

With Drogba expected to receive a three-match ban for the coin-throwing incident against Burnley, Anelka’s scoring streak could not have been better timed. Scolari highlighted the Frenchman’s confidence and the faith he has instilled in his team-mates as reasons for his metamorphosis — he scored only twice for Chelsea last season — but his deployment as the main striker, rather than a wide attacker, has also been crucial.

“He relishes the likes of Flo (Florent Malouda) and Coley (Joe Cole) and (Salomon) Kalou either side of him,” said Terry. “Some of his link-up play as well as his goals have been brilliant. He’s been a saviour for us with Didier out. When we signed him I said ‘thank God you are here’, because I used to hate playing against him. He always plays on your shoulder with pace and is a great finisher as well.” That much was evident at The Hawthorns, where Anelka exposed a naive Albion defence to bring a premature end to what always promised to be a one-sided contest. His first, after Malouda returned Abdoulaye Meite’s header, was particularly impressive, the 29-year-old tearing clear before dinking over Scott Carson. Seven minutes later he had a second, beating Carson at the near upright.

Anelka’s celebrations were typically muted but the smile that greeted Chelsea’s bodged attempt to score a fourth, when he set up Deco rather than shoot for goal, suggested the man once nicknamed the ‘Incredible Sulk’ is enjoying his football. Perhaps that should not come as a surprise when Chelsea are top and revelling in the extra space that opponents concede away from home. This was their 10th successive victory on the road in the league, equalling the record Tottenham set in 1959. “The main thing is to keep winning and try to frustrate the teams below us,” added Terry. “We’ve experienced chasing Manchester United over the last couple of years and it does get to you. If we can get to the goal difference that they had on us last year and the year before then it’s like another three points.”

Jose Bosingwa provided the breakthrough when he swept a left-footed shot inside Carson’s near post and from then on it was a case of damage limitation, with the chasm in class and Albion’s shortcomings up front shining through. Tony Mowbray pointed out that Albion, although bottom, have not been cut adrift, but the upcoming fixtures at Stoke and Wigan have taken on huge significance.

“Games against Stoke and Wigan will be critical to our season,” said Ishmael Miller, who squandered a decent early chance. “I thought we did all right against Chelsea but the last 10 minutes of the first half killed us a bit. The first 30 minutes we played some great football. If we play that sort of stuff against some of the other teams around us I think we will be OK.”

THE RESULTS

November 16: Everton 1 (Yakubu 65) drew with Middlesbrough 1 (O’Neil 8). Half-time: 0-1; Hull 2 (Cousin 14, Geovanni 60) drew with Manchester City 2 (Ireland 37 & 45). Half-time: 1-2.

November 15: Arsenal 0 lost to Aston Villa 2 (Clichy o.g. 70, Agbonlahor 80). Half-time: 0-0; Blackburn 1 (Samba 45+2) lost to Sunderland 2 (Jones 49, Cisse 71). Half-time: 1-0; Bolton 0 lost to Liverpool 2 (Kuyt 28, Gerrard 73). Half-time: 0-1; Fulham 2 (Davies 33, Johnson 70) bt Tottenham 1 (Campbell 81). Half-time: 1-0; Manchester United 5 (Ronaldo 3 & 89, Carrick 45+1, Berbatov 49, Welbeck 84) bt Stoke 0. Half-time: 2-0; Newcastle 2 (Owen 80, Martins 87) drew with Wigan 2 (Taylor 3, Bramble 89). Half-time: 0-1; West Brom 0 lost to Chelsea 3 (Bosingwa 34, Anelka 38 & 45+1). Half-time: 0-3; West Ham 0 drew with Portsmouth 0.