The mastery of Gianfranco Zola lit up drizzly Pride Park today with his
second-half goal kick-starting Chelsea into life and keeping their dreams of
Europe alive.
Zola admitted this week that his side had to beat Derby if they were to
wrestle their way into the top six, and his 63rd-minute goal set them on the way
towards realising that ambition.
Three goals in the last six minutes - one from Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and two
from substitute Gustavo Poyet - were the least Chelsea deserved for a dominant
display.
It handed the Rams their first home defeat since November and will keep them
looking over their shoulders at the relegation scrap.
Such is Zola's talent that even his misses will be remembered; the Italian
lighting up a frustrating first period with a 30th-minute volley which almost
put Paulo di Canio to shame.
He swung his left foot at Hasselbaink's left-wing cross and his searing shot
whacked against Mart Poom's right-hand post and denied him one of the goals of
the season.
Zola swept home Hasselbaink's cross on 63 minutes to end Chelsea's period of
frustration, and when he was substituted for Celestine Babayaro 11 minutes from
time, he received the acclaim of both sets of supporters.
So too should have Hasselbaink. He was at the centre of most Chelsea moves,
running onto Mario Stanic's defence-splitting pass to slot his deserved goal
past Poom as the Rams capitulated.
Their embarrassment was complete in the final seconds as substitute Gustavo
Poyet gave the scoreline a more realistic slant, knocking home first Le Saux's
cross from the right and then Marcel Desailly's from the right.
Claudio Ranieri's men had deserved more from their first-half efforts, in
which Zola's blockbuster was merely the pick of their glut of chances.
With the Rams' midfield overrun and their central defensive duo of Taribo West
and Chris Riggott stretched by the pace and vision of the irrepressible
Hasselbaink, the visitors will have wondered just how they failed to score
earlier.
Hasselbaink provided a taste of things to come after 10 minutes when he blazed
down the right flank before firing a powerful shot inches over Mart Poom's
crossbar.
Seven minutes later it was Le Saux's turn to try his luck, blazing a shot from
outside the left corner of the box which Poom, back for his first start since a
shoulder injury in January, dived to save brilliantly.
Mario Melchiot was denied a clear run into the box by a superb tackle from
behind by Rams youngster Paul Boertien, a rare high point in a laboured home
display.
Derby's solitary chance in their frustrating first period ought to have
presented Jim Smith's men with an undeserved half-time advantage.
Boertien crossed from the left corner and top scorer Malcolm Christie
completely mis-kicked inside the box.
The ball fell invitingly to youngster Adam Murray, who somehow contrived to
sidefoot the simplest of chances wide of Carlo Cudicini's post from no more than
eight yards out.
Murray paid for the miss when he was substituted with Kinkladze coming onto
rapturous acclaim.
But by then the Rams should have been two down, Poom flapping away a
Hasselbaink cross-shot from the left side as the visitors picked up the pace.
It was indicative of the Rams' lack of success up front that when their
equalising chance came it was centre-back Horacio Carbonari who latched onto
Christie's cross across the box.
The Argentinian, probably as surprised as anybody, mis-kicked wide.
Icelandic substitute Thordur Gudjonsson almost made a dramatic intervention,
crossing from the right byline with virtually his first touch and almost
catching out Chelsea keeper Cudicini.
But that was to be Derby's last throw of the dice, two minutes later Stanic
setting up the second goal which both Hasselbaink and Chelsea richly deserved.
The Rams' second consecutive defeat once again plunges them back into the
relegation dogfight while Chelsea could be dusting off their passports after
all.
Teams:
Derby: Poom, Delap, Riggott, West, Carbonari (Gudjonsson 82),
Boertien, Murray (Kinkladze 55), Powell, Johnson, Christie,
Burton.
Subs Not Used: Higginbotham, Mawene, Grant.
Booked: Johnson.
Chelsea: Cudicini, Melchiot, Desailly, Terry,
Le Saux (Gronkjaer 90), Stanic, Dalla Bona, Wise, Hasselbaink,
Zola (Babayaro 79), Gudjohnsen (Poyet 45).
Subs Not Used: de Goey, Jokanovic.
Booked: Wise.
Goals: Zola 64, Hasselbaink 85, Poyet 90, 90.
Att: 29,320
Ref: S Lodge (Barnsley).
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