Chelsea 2-1 QPR: Eden Hazard slots home second half penalty to edge out struggling Rangers in west London derby
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If
Oscar’s finish was perfect in its execution here at Stamford Bridge,
and my what a goal it was, the overall performance of this relentless
Chelsea side was not far off that either.
Jose
Mourinho will probably curse his players for allowing Charlie Austin to
level the score after 61 minutes with a quite brilliant flick of his
right foot. But this remained another impressive victory thanks, in the
end, to a reckless challenge from Eduardo Vargas that invited Eden
Hazard to respond by scoring from the penalty spot.
Mourinho
would probably see criticism in any comparison with his first
championship winning Chelsea team but after little more than a year into
his second spell here at Stamford Bridge he might have just succeeded
in creating something even better.
Eden Hazard celebrates what turned out to be the winning goal in the west London encounter between Chelsea and QPR
Charlie Austin jumps in the air after scoring his side's equaliser in the 62nd minute
Austin's QPR team-mates rush to celebrate with the striker as their side draws level with the Premier League leaders
Oscar celebrates his goal after putting his side 1-0 up against west London rivals Queens Park Rangers
That
first team was terrific. Powerful as well as potent, Sir Alex Ferguson
marvelled at their machine-like consumption of consecutive Premier
League titles.
But
there is something about this current crop of players that demands more
attention. Something that just makes them that much easier on the eye
while maintaining that ruthless quality that is enabling them to
maintain this impressive unbeaten run.
Mourinho’s
teams are always well organised and they also work incredibly hard but
the balance here between craft and hard graft is a joy to watch.
Clearly,
the acquisition of Cesc Fabregas has made an enormous difference, his
poise, precision and vision giving them something in midfield Chelsea
could not even claim to have had when Frank Lampard was driving them
towards trophy after trophy.
It
is not just Fabregas, of course, because this is far from a one man
team. It is a team that boasts so much flair and invention in players
like Eden Hazard, Willian and Oscar but also has the power and strength
of Diego Costa as well as a brilliantly-drilled back four.
Oscar’s
goal was a combination of both qualities. It might have been the
finesse of Fabregas that saw the ball delivered into the path of Oscar
but it owed much to Costa’s strength to hold the ball up for what was a
terrific one-two between the Spaniards.
But
the finish that followed from Oscar in the 32nd minute of this
enthralling encounter was just extraordinary, the Brazilian using the
outside of his right foot to curl the ball across the face of the QPR
goal and beyond the reach of a diving Rob Green via the inside of the
far post.
The
fact that he also had to squeeze the ball in front of Richard Dunne
demanded even more precision. But it was the bend of the ball that was
most breathtaking, with photographs that were taken from certain angles
highlighting the astoinishing flight of the ball.
Oscar opened the scoring in the 32nd minute after an impressive passing move by Chelsea
The Brazilian attacking midfielder scored his fourth goal of the season against Harry Redknapp's side
Filipe Luis congratulated his fellow countryman and Chelsea team-mate after Oscar scored past QPR goalkeeper Rob Green
Redknapp greets his opposite number Jose Mourinho before Saturday's encounter at Stamford Bridge
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