19/10/2005  Chelsea 4 Real Betis 0
 
Chelsea's passage into the knockout phase of the Champions League now looks assured after a magnificent victory over Real Betis at Stamford Bridge.

Jose Mourinho had pinpointed two wins against the Spaniards as pivotal to their progress in the competition and the first half of the job was carried out with competent ease in London as Chelsea took their tally to 13 goals in their last three games.

The win puts the Blues top of Group G and with Mourinho believing nine points will be enough to ensure qualification to the next stage, the English champions can achieve their ambitions with a similarly classy performance in sun-kissed Seville in a fortnight.

Prior to kick-off Betis were just a point behind the Londoners and quietly believed they possessed the necessary firepower to inflict the first defeat of the season on the runaway Barclays Premiership leaders.

But they were taken apart by a Chelsea side who have yet to meet their match either domestically or in Europe this season and who, on this kind of form, look more than capable of going one step further than the semi-final stage they reached last season.

The Spaniards, currently languishing in mid-table in La Liga with just two wins to their name this season, are not particularly noted for their attacking ambitions.

However, coach Lorenzo Serra Ferrer had the good sense to understand that trying to defend against Mourinho's men is a futile tactic which merely invites Chelsea to inflict maximum damage on their opponents. Sadly for the Betis chief, it made no difference.

They briefly threatened to shock Chelsea and Joaquin's fourth minute free-kick would have caused Carlo Cudicini problems had Frank Lampard not protected his goalkeeper with a timely intervention.

Sixty seconds later it was Claude Makelele's turn to rescue the Londoners when he cleared a header from Gutierrez Juanito off the goal-line.

At this juncture, the Spaniards looked lively, full of invention and goalscoring intent - a refreshing change from the lifeless performance Anderlecht produced against the Blues in the first game of this season's competition.

It wasn't long though before the Chelsea machine inevitably began to crank itself into a momentum which, as most teams have discovered this season, is difficult to halt once it reaches a certain gear.

The hands of Betis goalkeeper Antonio Doblas had already been stung by a vicious 20-yard drive from Joe Cole and when Shaun Wright-Phillips evaded his marker and delivered a measured cross into the six-yard box, Didier Drogba was inches away from applying the finishing touch.

The Ivory coast hitman, enjoying a rich vein of form after bagging a brace in their 5-1 Barclays Premiership demolition of Bolton on Saturday, soon made amends - making Betis pay dearly for giving the ball away cheaply in midfield.

The guilty party, Fernando Varela, presented the ball to Michael Essien in the centre circle and the Ghanaian international burst forward unchallenged as the Betis defence opted for a policy of containment rather than confrontation.

However, Essien proved far to clever for the Spaniards and, after fooling the retreating defenders by feigning to shoot, he supplied the perfect pass into the penalty area for the lurking Drogba to thread the ball under the body of the advancing Doblas in the 24th minute.

A minute before the interval and Real's hopes evaporated completely thanks to another present - this time courtesy of 'keeper Doblas.

He kindly dropped Frank Lampard's free-kick at the feet of Ricardo Carvalho on his own goal line and the Portuguese defender gleefully smashed the ball home.

Not even the loss of Drogba at half-time could upset Chelsea's evening although it may have imminent repercussions in terms of the Premiership this weekend.

He felt the full force of a David Rivas tackle just before the break and was replaced at half-time by Hernan Crespo.

In the 59th minute, Chelsea put the game beyond the reach of their opponents with a splendid move that had Mourinho out of his seat and celebrating along the touchline in a rare display of Portuguese pleasure.

The prime mover was the impressive Essien who delivered the perfect ball into the path of England midfielder Cole.

The youngster, showing yet more evidence of his growing maturity and stature, waited for the right moment to despatch a right-foot shot into the bottom corner of the net from the edge of penalty area.

But the best was yet to come. It arrived five minutes later courtesy of a stunning three man move. Lampard's superb 30-yard pass over the top of Melli's head was met by Wright-Phillips who volleyed the ball, first-time, back into the six-yard box for Crespo to head home from point blank range.

It was a move of sheer quality and class and put the gloss on another scintillating performance from Chelsea.