MSK Zilina 1 - 4 Chelsea
Anelka (third left) scored twice as Chelsea strolled to victory
|
By Mandeep Sanghera
|
Chelsea registered an emphatic win over MSK Zilina as they got their bid for a first Champions League title under way.
Michael
Essien side-footed the visitors ahead before Nicolas Anelka added to
the lead when he angled in a shot and poked in from close range. Daniel Sturridge rounded keeper Martin Dubravka to slot in Chelsea's fourth.
But Petr Cech missed a cross, which was inadvertently headed goalwards by Branislav Ivanovic, and Tomas Oravec grabbed a consolation Zilina goal.
Chelsea have been in freescoring mode in the Premier League this season and continued in the same vein as they took Zilina apart to take their tally to 21 goals in five games.
 |
606: DEBATE
|
On that occasion, it was the first leg of a Champions League third-round qualifier and Chelsea beat the Slovakian side 2-0 before going on to win 5-0 on aggregate.
And the Premier League champions made similarly easy work of brushing aside Zilina this time around.
The home side had gone through three rounds to make it to the group stage for the first time in their history and the adrenalin of the occasion helped them make a promising start before reality kicked in.
Yossi Benayoun slid a delightful ball into striker Anelka, who put a ball across which Essien side-footed in from 12 yards.
Zilina tried to hit back and Robert Jez saw Cech spill his low free-kick before the keeper gathered at the second attempt, while Babatounde Bello had a header easily saved.
However, the visitors quickly reasserted their grip on the game as they continued their penchant for goals.
Anelka's celebration after scoring against Zilina
|
Anelka poked in from point-blank range to make it 3-0 after John Terry had headed a Malouda corner against the crossbar and Chelsea were threatening to run riot against the Slovakian league leaders.
Admir Vladavic had two long-range strikes for Zilina blocked away by Cech but their predicament got worse when Benayoun played another telling ball from midfield.
The Israeli found Sturridge and he rounded keeper Dubravka before slotting in a left-foot shot.
Chelsea's biggest danger was complacency and so it proved as they eased off and allowed Zilina some encouragement by gifting them a goal.
Cech flapped as he missed a cross, which was sent goalwards off the head of Ivanovic, and Oravec slid in to get the final touch before the ball crossed the line.
Tomas Majtan angled a shot wide and Lubomir Guldan sent a header past the post as Zilina restored some pride and gave new voice to their crowd.
Chelsea even had the luxury of bringing on youngsters Gael Kakuta and Joshua McEachran as they comfortably closed out the game and deliver an early sign of their determination to end their Champions League jinx and win the competition for the first time.