Anelka brace sees Blues keep pressure on Liverpool
Nicolas Anelka has six goals in his last four matches
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Robbie Keane ended his Liverpool goal drought in the Premier League as he scored twice in his side's 3-0 win over West Brom this evening. |  |
Sunday, 09, Nov 2008 09:19
Nicolas Anelka bagged a brace to give Chelsea a 2-0 win over Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.
The Frenchman struck a goal in each half to put the Blues level with Liverpool at the top of the Premier League.
Despite the absence of several stars including Didier Drogba, Joe Cole, and Ashley Cole, the visitors were dominant in the driving rain.
Luiz Felipe Scolari's side should have been awarded a penalty in the fifth minute when Anelka was tripped by keeper Paul Robinson but referee Chris Foy waved play on.
Robinson had a busy afternoon, blocking Anelka's header with his legs before parrying Frank Lampard's 30-yard pile-driver.
Rovers, playing Jason Roberts as a lone striker, created few chances but came agonizingly close to grabbing a shock lead when Carlos Villaneuva's swerving shot was tipped over the bar by Petr Cech.
At the other end, Robinson continued to thwart the Blues with a stunning one-handed save to keep out Anelka's shot before beating away another Lampard long-range effort.
But the ex-Tottenham keeper could do little to stop Chelsea taking the lead on 40 minutes when Jose Bosingwa's 35-yard drive struck Anelka's knee and dribbled over the line.
Rovers boss Paul Ince brought on Matt Derbyshire for the second half which brought an improvement, with Roberts' low shot saved by Cech while Villaneuva curled an effort over.
But the Blues killed the game off on 68 minutes when Anelka ran onto Lampard's through ball and dinked the ball over the onrushing Robinson for his 11th goal of the season.
Chelsea continued to bomb forward in the closing stages and were unlucky not to increase their lead with Lampard thumping a free-kick against the crossbar while Robinson blocked a shot from Anelka when the Frenchman was clean through, as the Blues equal the Premier League record of nine straight away wins.