Impressive debutants help seal Chelsea win

The performances of Meireles and Mata, both making their full debuts, contributed greatly to this reasonably comfortable win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.  Mata again impressed with his verve and skill whilst Meireles showed the kind of passing ability which puzzles why Liverpool let him go relatively easily.

We did get a bit of a scare at the end when the Black Cats pulled one back right in injury time, but the late resurgence was too late for Steve Bruce’s boys to get anything out of the game.

It was good to see Villas Boas continue with his constant marshalling and instructions, squatting by the touchline and no doubt he will be comforted that this was our best performance this season.  Nowhere near the finished article yet of course, but this work in progress bodes well for the future.

Terry notched the first from a tight angle after good work from Mata, whilst Sturridge, not fully match fit after serving a 3 match suspension, scored a cheeky Chelsea 2^nd goal with his back heel which just clipped in off the far post.

The only slight cause of concern was the below par Torres performance during the last 20 minutes – surely he was being rested for Tuesday’s encounter against Leverkusen?  The Spaniard needs a goal whilst maintaining the look of sharpness that he has displayed during the first few matches this season.

Luiz remained on the bench and should also make up part of a different line up for the Champions League match.

So far so good in general I’d say…