Jose Mourinho was left to reflect
on a job well done after this afternoon's 2-0 victory at Derby in theFA Cup.
Like at Southampton on Wednesday,
the first half was entertaining and end to end, if shorn of goals, and like at
Southampton it needed a second-half header to open the scoring.
After Michael Essien was replaced
John Mikel Obi took the captain's armband, and, on his 300th appearance in a
Chelsea shirt, capped his day with a goal, thumping home Willian's free-kick
with a bullet header.
Oscar added a second soon after,
swerving the ball past Derby's keeper Lee Grant with a fine strike, and the
remaining minutes were played out in relative comfort as we eventually eased
into the fourth round, where a home tie with Stoke City awaits.
Jose Mourinho said he was delighted
with his side's attitude against a side going well in the Championship…
'The game was difficult,' said
Mourinho. 'In the first half we played quite well, we were not far from scoring
but it was still 0-0 at half-time and that is a big risk, because after that if
the opponent scores you are in trouble.
'They got the message that in the
second half we needed an extra intensity. I decided to change Essien for Eden
Hazard to bring an extra attacking player on to make it more difficult for
them.
'The team played seriously, we won,
job done.'
It was a landmark day for John
Mikel Obi, in many respects…
'I never recognise his ability to
score goals!' the Portuguese laughed.
'I recognise his ability to play as
an anchorman, to play that position in a very comfortable way, with no
mistakes. He reads the game well, plays in an intelligent and safe way, but I
never recognise his goalscoring appetite.
'There was a smile on my face [when
he scored]. For some reason Essien gave him the armband, normally it should go
to Ashley Cole, so maybe it made him believe he was a goalscorer!
'It was important for us, we were
dominating and dominating, creating and creating but the goal was not arriving.
It was like the winning goal.'
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