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Chelsea’s Diego Costa nets eighth league goal in win over Aston Villa Chelsea’s Diego Costa nets eighth league goal in win over Aston Villa
(about 3 hours later)
Chelsea extended their splendid start to the season, strolling to an ultimately stylish and straightforward success over an Aston Villa side that, while not quite as calamitous as against Arsenal last week, could do nothing to halt Diego Costa’s sensational introduction to English football. The striker scored one, his eighth goal in six league matches, and created another before coming off to spend the last 10 minutes resting his suspect hamstrings, as Villa’s impressive early-season form continued to recede into fairly recent memory. Against Arsenal last week Aston Villa’s team had been laid low by a virus; this time they were brought to their knees by a phenomenon they found similarly impossible to defend against and equally destructive to their morale and their victory chances, in the rather more human shape of Diego Costa.
José Mourinho’s continuing spat with Manuel Pellegrini demonstrates how he is normally selective with his enemies, picking mainly on key rivals. So perhaps he saw something others did not when he pointedly refused to shake hands with Swansea’s Garry Monk and got himself sent off at Aston Villa last season, with those two clubs going on to challenge for the league leadership, as well as providing successive league visitors to Stamford Bridge in the early weeks of this season. The Chelsea striker scored one – his eighth goal in six league matches – and created another before coming off to spend the last 10 minutes resting his suspect hamstrings, the leaders’ victory assured. It was a fine if imperfect display from the Spaniard, whose passing outside the penalty area was often imprecise, but, more importantly, his movement was constant and menacing, and when the ball fell his way in the area he was typically devastating.
Despite Villa’s promising form, last weekend’s virus-afflicted home defeat by Arsenal notwithstanding, the home side would have been confident of a positive result against a team that had capitulated 7-1 and 8-0 here in recent seasons and that, with a tally before kick-off of eight, had conjured precisely half as many shots on target as Chelsea had scored goals so far this campaign. In further statistical news this was a special occasion for fans of large, round numbers, particularly those of a Chelsea persuasion, marking as it did Mourinho’s 250th match in charge of the club, their 4,000th league game and their 2,000th league game at home. José Mourinho said that goals were of particular importance for Costa given that he is doing “almost nothing” in training. “For me what’s important is that the team scores enough goals to win,” he said. “But I know it’s good for him and for his confidence, especially for a player like him who’s not training as he should, so he cannot be on top of his game.”
Though there was be no immediate improvement to those shots-on-goal figures, the visitors started reasonably well, with Thibaut Courtois forced to sprint off his line to reach Kieran Richardson’s pass before the onrushing Fabian Delph, and John Terry stretching every sinew to reach Aly Cissokho’s excellent left-wing cross ahead of Richardson, both incidents in the first six minutes. A few seconds later they fell behind. Having complained earlier in the week that Spain remain free to select Costa despite his injury concerns, Mourinho now pinpointed the period next month in which they have back-to-back qualifiers against Slovakia and Luxembourg as key to Costa’s long-term fortunes for club and country. ‚
A feature of the first half was the sprightly running of Willian, nominally on the right of a three-man line behind Diego Costa, beyond team-mates in possession in all areas of the pitch. In this manner he not only created Chelsea’s opening goal but also the best of their missed first-half opportunities. In the seventh minute Branislav Ivanovic released him down the right and, with the obvious options to his left all marked, he drilled a low shot at Brad Guzan, which the goalkeeper could only beat back into his path; next time he pulled back to the now-clear Oscar, who rolled the ball through Philippe Senderos’s legs and into goal. Then in the 15th minute Willian ran on to Costa’s excellent backheel flick and set off down the centre, but Nathan Baker diligently shepherded him wide of goal, from where his shot was deflected wide. “If he stays here, and spends 15 days just on treatment and recovery and making the muscle stronger, he has the perfect chance to be top for Chelsea and for the national team,” he said. “If he doesn’t have this chance, he will always play one game, and the next he’s in trouble.”
Though their advantage remained slender, Chelsea’s players displayed the kind of class and confidence that befit league leaders and title favourites, with Oscar beating Senderos with a drop of the shoulder that provoked not so much cheers from the nearby fans as a collective sigh of pleasure, and Eden Hazard attempting to find Willian with a rabona that was greeted rapturously – one can only imagine what would have happened had it gone anywhere near its target. He played this game, and it was Villa who were in trouble. The visitors had built their impressive early-season form on defensive solidity rather than attacking brio – they arrived here with three clean sheets and just eight shots on target in five previous games – but a team that struggles so badly to create and take chances is unlikely to prosper against this calibre of opponent.
Villa, without adding to their shots-on-target tally, reminded the home side that they were still in the game with Delph driving narrowly wide from 25 yards, and Baker heading narrowly over from 10, as the second half started similarly to the first – unfortunately for the visitors, even down to Chelsea scoring an early goal. This time the Villa defence was mesmerised by some neat triangular passing on the left and when César Azpilicueta eventually speared in a cross nobody was watching Costa, who powerfully headed in his eighth league goal of the season. They were never overrun but Thibaut Courtois made only one save, from Alan Hutton’s tame effort at the end of a long individual run in the 69th minute, despite a flurry of almost-chances at the start of each half.
Four minutes later some more brisk passing, another smart back-heel and a kindly ricochet set Oscar running clear, but his finish was casual and Cissokho slid in to clear as the ball rolled gently goalwards. The goal prompted a change in Villa’s thinking, with Darren Bent and Charles N’Zogbia rising from the bench to provide belated if ultimately insufficient support for Gabriel Agbonlahor, and a minute later, the 69th, Alan Hutton had their first and only shot on target, a harmless effort at the end of a long individual run. “Against teams like this, when you get a chance you have to score,” said the Villa manager, Paul Lambert. “But when you come here, if you get beat you’ve got to leave with your confidence intact, which we certainly are. Other than failing to get a goal, I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
Chelsea wrapped up victory in the 79th minute. Costa had far too much space on the left, from where he cut inside, cut inside a little more and then sent in a shot that Guzan pushed into Cissokho, the ball landing helpfully between Willian and an empty net. From Lambert’s perspective there was an element of misfortune about the first and third goals, with Willian benefitting from handy ricochets on both occasions.
For the first, the Brazilian was sent scurrying down the right by Branislav Ivanovic and, with all team-mates to his left marked, he shot low and hard towards the near post. Brad Guzan pushed the ball straight back into his path, and this time Willian pulled back to the now-clear Oscar, whose finish trundled through Philippe Senderos’s legs on its way to goal.
Willian came close to a second in the 15th minute when he ran on to Costa’s excellent backheel flick and set off down the centre but Nathan Baker diligently shepherded him wide of goal, from where his shot was deflected the wrong side of the near post.
Though their advantage remained slender, Chelsea displayed the class and confidence that befits league leaders and title favourites, with Oscar beating Senderos with a drop of the shoulder that provoked not so much cheers from the nearby fans as a collective sigh of pleasure, and Eden Hazard, who was otherwise becalmed, attempting a showy rabona.
“I don’t remember feeling fear or scared or not comfortable,” said Mourinho. “The team always gave the feeling that everything was under control.”
All the more so when, in the 59th minute, the Villa defence was momentarily mesmerised by some neat triangular passing on the left and forgot to keep an eye on Costa, who scored with a powerful header when César Azpilicueta finally speared in a cross.
Twenty minutes later, Aly Cissokho having in the meantime cleared Oscar’s casual effort as it rolled towards the line, Costa was found in too much space on the left, from where he cut inside, cut inside a little more and then sent in a shot that bounced off Guzan and Cissokho before landing helpfully between Willian and an empty net.