15) Bolton Wanderers 0 - 1 Chelsea Fc

Chelsea did for Bolton the Bolton way - a set piece! Michael Ballack headed the game's only goal from a Frank Lampard corner in stoppage time at the end of the first-half. It was a soporific start to proceedings which shot to steaming hot around the 20 minutes mark. Cudicini had slipped but Anelka headed over; Bolton had hit diagonal passes and Chelsea headed them away; Drogba had skipped past Meita but couldn't find Shevchenko with his cross. Then Lampard wellied a 40 yards free-kick which Jaaskelainen had to parry as he flung himself across goal; Drogba hit a free-kick from beyond the diagonal which Jaaskelainen turned away with another athletic dive; Carvalho headed Lampard's corner against the outside of the post, and Essien fired the clearance just over with Bolton defenders scrambling to cover. The game went quiet again with plenty of Chelsea possession and plenty more Bolton charging until just after the half-hour when Chelsea won a couple of corners and Campo was booked for bending over Carvalho threateningly and presumably accuse him of diving. Straight at the other end Diouf blasted his way past Geremi and Carvalho and was only stopped at the trigger-pulling by Makelele's supreme covering. Diouf's subsequent inswinging corner looked to be heading straight in on a wicked curve, but at the last moment Cudicini leapt to turn the ball away. Again, straight to the other end and Cole's low drive into the penalty area wasn't controlled by arriving Ballack, arriving in a crowd, and the ball ran to Jaaskelainen. Carvalho's name was next in referee Bennett's book for bringing down Ben Haim whose charge up the left from his unfamiliar left-back position followed by a square turn was clearly the turn of a man who didn't know where he was going. In the second minute of stoppage time, Shevchenko finally fought a bit of space, pushed the ball ahead of him and let rip from 35 yards. Another flying Jaaskeilainen tip-round led to Lampard's fourth corner of the half. He whipped it in with pace and Ballack nipped in at the neat post to glance a header for his fourth goal of the season. As the teams left the field for half-time, Faye was booked for arguing with the referee that stoppage time had gone on longer than the allotted two minutes. But that was because Chelsea had won the corner. He should have known better.

So despite it being a low-key affair, Chelsea had managed six shots on target including one goal, and a strike against the post. Early in the second-half, Ben Haim cut in once more and drove just wide from 25 yards, while Drogba worked space in the area and forced another parrying, diving save from Jaaskelainen. Two minutes later Lampard from 30 yards did likewise. But it wasn't all Chelsea. Anelka won a free-kick off Carvalho for high kicking despite appearing to handle, and Diouf repeated his dangerous set-play of the first-half, this time from a free-kick which everyone missed. Cudicini had to dive at the last moment to scramble the ball away. Chelsea were playing some lovely keep-ball in Bolton's half as openings were sort, but the challenge to find width with the diamond formation looked greater away from home with the full-backs getting forward less. Cole had been the full-back getting forward the most, but on Geremi's first deep sortie his dangerous cross was well punched away from diving Drogba by counter-diving Jaaskelainen. Campo's long throws were becoming as monotonous as Bolton's diagonal balls, and they were having no greater success. But Chelsea had to be careful of conceding so many. The Bolton law of averages is that in the end one will go in. Fit again Kalou had replaced Shevchenko with 13 minutes left - Vaz Te had gone on for Davies and neither side had changed shape - when Diouf found space from a knocked-on cross, and had time to set himself before shooting for the near post. Cudicini's lightning pounce was his best save since returning to the team. The game had finally become more stretched and there was room to play. Curiously, this seemed to suit Bolton better. But Drogba showed his class by accelerating inside Hunt and curling an extraordinary 25 yarder over Jaaskelainen and only just over the bar. When Campo hurled another long-distance grenade into Cudicini's area with five minutes to go, Bolton manager Alladyce was dramatically waving his team forward. Hilariously, Mourinho started doing likewise, dramatically waving Kalou forward so that at least one player was in a counter-attacking position.

Nolan was booked for dissent with three minutes left as Bolton continued to drive forward. In the final minute Cudicini had to block from Diouf again as a ball over the top wasn't dealt with, but apart from that Bolton rarely threatened. For Terry, in outstanding form as usual, it was another clean sheet on his 200th Premiership appearance. But with Manchester United winning at home to Everton, it was a crucial victory. Arsenal lost at Fulham. Bolton (4-3-3) Jaaskelainen; Hunt, Faye, Meite, Ben Haim; Nolan (c), Camo, Speed; Davies (Vaz Te 75), Anelka, Diouf. Booked Campo (33), Faye (45+2), Nolan (87). Chelsea (4-1-2-1-2) Cudicini; Geremi, Carvalho, Terry (c), A Cole; Makelele; Essien, Lampard; Ballack; Shevchenko (Kalou 77), Drogba (Mikel 89). Scorer Ballack (45+2), Booked Carvalho (39).