Eidur Gudjohnsen scored twice after Frank Lampard's deflected free kick put
Chelsea in front as the Premiership champions-elect took another giant step
towards their first title in 50 years.
Substitute Kevin Phillips pulled one back in the 69th minute after Saints, who
stay out of the bottom three, had piled on the pressure at 2-0 down.
But Gudjohnsen's cool finish to an immaculate passing move clinched victory
with eight minutes left, leaving Chelsea 13 points clear at the top after
Manchester United's home draw.
Chelsea were without injured stars like Arjen Robben, Paulo Ferreira and former Saints star Wayne Bridge for the tea-time trip to St Mary's while
controversial manager Jose Mourinho had just been banned and fined in Europe.
As for the Saints, their fortunes have looked considerably up since Harry
Redknapp arrived from just down the road at Portsmouth.
They had already been told they were safe from the bottom three for another
week after defeats for Norwich and Crystal Palace and their early endeavours
reflected the new self-confidence Redknapp and his son, midfield general Jamie,
have instilled.
But any uncertainty Chelsea might have felt lasted just about 20 minutes. That
is when they discovered they still have the key to that cupboard of luck
that can make all the difference in this game.
To be brutally honest, neither side had looked the Premiership part in that
time but there was something about the way Chelsea's patched-up defence kept the
Southampton raiders at bay.
Joe Cole tested the water with a tame shot before a dubious free kick went
Chelsea's way and Frank Lampard's thumping free kick took an outrageous
deflection off Rory Delap on the end of the wall to confound goalkeeper Antti
Niemi.
It was Lampard's 12th Chelsea goal of the season that caused a sea-change in
the game with the London club suddenly in complete command.
Home fans were not in love with some of Mark Halsey's decisions, either, and
when he gave Chelsea another free kick after what looked like a good challenge
by Nigel Quashie on William Gallas they chanted "Have you bought the
referee?"
A casual back-pass, however, by Claus Lundekvam had Saints in trouble as the
ball bounced towards the net but Niemi flung himself with feet outstretched and
knocked the ball away for a corner without conceding anything more drastic.
The keeper also did well to hang onto Robert Huth's shot through a crowd of
players from the flag-kick that followed and within a minute Peter Crouch had
headed wide at the other end.
But hopes of a Southampton revival were rudely swept away in the 39th minute
when Glen Johnson's penetrating run past a series of half-hearted challenges
ended with a subtle pull-back for Gudjohnsen to drill past Niemi for 2-0.
Half-time conversation must have been good because Saints would not give up
and Chelsea were forced to take a comeback seriously.
The towering Crouch stretched might and mane to turn the tide and locked horns
with the Chelsea defenders, notably John Terry, in a pulsating battle.
Saints claimed he was being held when he headed a cross from one substitute
Anders Svensson back to another Kevin Phillips to flick a header which Peter
Cech flipped over the bar.
But two minutes later, when Phillips had been on the field only three minutes,
he drilled a left-foot shot from Delap's cross past the Czech Republic giant
and, briefly, the fight was on again.
With eight minutes left, however, Chelsea unfurled the kind of slick passing
move that suggested they could have had the game won any time they liked.
And when Gudjohnsen turned the final pass into the corner of the net with
unerring accuracy, you saw the difference between the top and the bottom regions
of the Premiership.
Thirteen points is the gap now between Chelsea and new second-placed team
Arsenal. It looks far too much.
Teams
Southampton Niemi, Delap, Lundekvam, Jakobsson, Bernard,
Telfer, Redknapp, Quashie, Le Saux (Anders Svensson 63),
Camara (Phillips 63), Crouch.
Subs Not Used: Smith, Higginbotham, Davenport.
Goals: Phillips 69.
Chelsea Cech, Johnson, Huth, Terry, Gallas, Lampard, Makelele,
Gudjohnsen, Duff (Jarosik 80), Kezman (Drogba 65),
Cole (Tiago 45).
Subs Not Used: Cudicini, Ricardo Carvalho.
Booked: Kezman, Tiago.
Goals: Lampard 22, Gudjohnsen 39, 83.
Att: 31,949
Ref: M Halsey (Lancashire).
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