John Jensen on Blackburn Rovers & Champions League
- 10 years ago
An under-strength Chelsea side eased past already-relegated Blackburn with a dominant display at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues rested most of their star names ahead of next Saturday's Champions League final but were too strong for their outclassed opposition.
John Terry's towering header from a teasing Romelu Lukaku cross and a toe-poked Raul Meireles effort made it 2-0.
Chelsea missed a host of chances but held on despite Yakubu's second-half header during a rare Rovers attack.
The scoreline did not reflect the home side's supremacy in an entertaining end-of-season dead rubber.
For Chelsea, an unsatisfactory sixth place - their worst in ten years - was guaranteed, while Championship-bound Blackburn could only finish second bottom after a season of turmoil on and off the pitch.
The home side's failure to secure Champions League qualification through their Premier League finish and Blackburn's inability to take their relegation scrap down to the final game meant the Blues could fully justify their weakened team selection with no fear of reprisals.
The small matter of the Champions League final against Bayern Munich meant Blues manager Roberto di Matteo was only ever going to use this match as an exercise in protecting his squad, and he did so while also giving full Premier League debuts to defender Sam Hutchinson and teenage striker Romelu Lukaku.
Both impressed, Hutchinson with a solid display that will give him confidence if called upon in Germany next week should David Luiz and Gary Cahill fail to recover from injuries, and Lukaku with a bustling performance leading the line.
Teenager Lukaku and Daniel Sturridge were both prominent as Chelsea's movement, incisive passing and relentless tempo pinned Rovers in their own half.
Blackburn, whose only noteworthy first-half effort saw Ross Turnbull tip over Jason Lowe's strike, struggled to venture forward and only some great work by debutant goalkeeper Jake Kean kept the score level early on.
Kean denied Lukaku
The Blues rested most of their star names ahead of next Saturday's Champions League final but were too strong for their outclassed opposition.
John Terry's towering header from a teasing Romelu Lukaku cross and a toe-poked Raul Meireles effort made it 2-0.
Chelsea missed a host of chances but held on despite Yakubu's second-half header during a rare Rovers attack.
The scoreline did not reflect the home side's supremacy in an entertaining end-of-season dead rubber.
For Chelsea, an unsatisfactory sixth place - their worst in ten years - was guaranteed, while Championship-bound Blackburn could only finish second bottom after a season of turmoil on and off the pitch.
The home side's failure to secure Champions League qualification through their Premier League finish and Blackburn's inability to take their relegation scrap down to the final game meant the Blues could fully justify their weakened team selection with no fear of reprisals.
The small matter of the Champions League final against Bayern Munich meant Blues manager Roberto di Matteo was only ever going to use this match as an exercise in protecting his squad, and he did so while also giving full Premier League debuts to defender Sam Hutchinson and teenage striker Romelu Lukaku.
Both impressed, Hutchinson with a solid display that will give him confidence if called upon in Germany next week should David Luiz and Gary Cahill fail to recover from injuries, and Lukaku with a bustling performance leading the line.
Teenager Lukaku and Daniel Sturridge were both prominent as Chelsea's movement, incisive passing and relentless tempo pinned Rovers in their own half.
Blackburn, whose only noteworthy first-half effort saw Ross Turnbull tip over Jason Lowe's strike, struggled to venture forward and only some great work by debutant goalkeeper Jake Kean kept the score level early on.
Kean denied Lukaku