Live Commentary:&nbsp;St Patrick&#039;s Athletic 0-4 Chelsea - as it happened

88 minChelsea do manage to extend their lead, and Giroud has his second. Pressure from Palmer led to a mistake from a defender, giving Giroud the chance to run towards goal. Two defenders were in his way, but the Frenchman still managed to find the far bottom corner with a low shot from 12 yards.

87 minST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC 0-4 CHELSEA (OLIVIER GIROUD

85 minThe Premier League side are on the defensive right now, but that will not concern Lampard. He may want to see his side fight to keep a clean sheet after they shipped an 89th-minute goal earlier this week.

83 minWe have reached the point where I would be surprised if we see any more goals. There is no pace or flow to this game, with Chelsea effectively playing on the break.

YELLOW CARD!

81 minThere are less than 10 minutes to go now but the referee still feels the need to hand a yellow card to Christensen, who has hauled down Burns.

78 minChelsea have now got themselves back in possession, but there isn't a massive desire to plough men forward in search of a fourth.

76 minIt remains much of the same, with Chelsea taking the opportunity to do some work off the ball. They are keeping the hosts away from Cumming's goal, however.

74 minThere isn't a lot to report from the last few minutes. St Patrick's are seeing more of the ball without offering any more of a threat going forward.

72 minLampard will be keen for his players to avoid simply going through the motions during the closing stages. Fitness levels are everything at this stage of pre-season, but the club legend will almost want this XI to show the same desire as the players in the opening half.

69 minThe Blues still aren't playing with the same tempo as in the first half, but there will be a certain degree of satisfaction which comes with a patient build-up leading to a well-made goal.

67 minChelsea finally have their third. Kenedy's clever cross from the left finds Giroud all on his own at the back post, and the Frenchman does the rest with a volley from close range.

67 minST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC 0-3 CHELSEA (OLIVIER GIROUD)

65 minChelsea engineer another opportunity, with the Blues having a two-on-one situation in their favour. Kenedy decides to take the shot on, with Murphy getting down well to his left to prevent the Brazilian's attempt from finding the bottom corner.

64 minIt should be three. Pedro plays a neat one-two with Palmer, who is able to play the Spaniard into the penalty area. However, his low strike from 14 yards is well dealt with by Murphy.

62 minChelsea are currently enduring their quietest period of the match. It comes as a relief for the hosts, who would have been worried about losing heavily given the gulf in class during the opening 45 minutes.

60 minWe should note that St Patrick's are making regular alterations during this second half. They are already beginning to look ahead of next week's trip tp Sweden in the Europa League.

58 minA noticeable trend in Chelsea's play is the willingness to fire the ball into the strikers. Christensen did so with Giroud on this occasion, but the Frenchman could only get a weak effort away from 20 yards.

56 minChelsea are yet to regain their rhythm since the stoppage, but it won't hurt them to have to think their way back into the contest. It has all been too easy so far.

54 minWe have had a break in play for an injury, but we are back up and running. St Patrick's probably welcomed the breather, even at this early stage of the second half.

52 minThis would have been a delightful goal. Kenedy, Palmer and Giroud all combine to tee up Pedro, but the Spaniard can only get a weak volley away on the stretch from 12 yards.

50 minChelsea have already created a couple of half-chances for Palmer and Giroud, but both efforts went straight at Murphy.

48 minAs promised... CHELSEA XI: Cumming; Azpilicueta, Zouma, Christensen, Alonso; Bakayoko, Gilmour; Pedro, Palmer, Kenedy; Giroud

KICKOFF:

46 minChelsea get us back underway.

3.00pmChelsea will be using a completely different team for the second half. We will bring you that as soon as we have it.

2.55pmRESULT! Manchester United got their pre-season schedule underway earlier today with a 2-0 win over Perth Glory. Click here to have a read of our on-the-whistle match report.

2.51pmThe half-time whistle goes in Dublin and Chelsea head into the break with a 2-0 advantage thanks to goals from Mount and Palmieri. The Blues have been completely dominant and should have had at least five goals during the opening 45 minutes. However, Lampard will be delighted with that performance at this stage of pre-season.

HALF TIME:

45 minST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC 0-2 CHELSEA

44 minHow have Chelsea only scored twice in this match? Abraham is sent clear of the St Patrick's defence and should score, but the academy graduate is too obvious with his shot, leading to Murphy making the save to his left.

43 minAnother shot for Chelsea. Another shot for Batshuayi. The Belgian - on this occasion - drills over the bar after holding off the attention of a defender on the edge of the area.

SAVE!

41 minBarkley is given the nod, with the Englishman seeing a low curling effort helped past the right-hand post. It wasn't convincing from Murphy, but it did the job.

40 minChelsea win a free kick inside the 'D' on the edge of the area. The Blues are stacked with options for positions like this.

38 minBatshuayi is probably wondering what he needs to do to score in this game. The Belgian turns well inside the area before aiming a shot towards the far bottom corner. However, Murphy is equal to it.

36 minChelsea have been absolutely relentless on the offensive. St Patrick's probably deserve a bit of credit for keeping it down to just the two goals.

SAVE!

34 minFair play to Murphy - he has redeemed himself here. Batshuayi was given the chance to get a volley away from inside the area, but the St Patrick's stopper manages to tip the ball over the crossbar.

31 minChelsea double their advantage in slightly calamitous circumstances. Palmieri's shot from the edge of the area should be dealt with by Murphy, but the goalkeeper somehow manages to let the ball goes into the centre of the goal.

31 minST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC 0-2 CHELSEA (EMERSON PALMIERI)

30 minFinally, a shot in anger from St Patrick's. The ball fell invitingly for Bermingham around 25 yards from goal, but the left-back's attempt was comfortably held by Caballero down to his left.

29 minWhat has been particularly impressive about this Chelsea performance is the desire to impress. None of these players are prepared to go through the motions because they are aware that places are up for grabs.

OFF THE POST!

27 minChelsea come agonisingly close to adding a second through Barkley. The Englishman found himself in space on the edge of the area before firing a shot towards the far corner, only for Murphy to tip the strike onto the inside of the post.

25 minAbraham again gets himself into the thick of the action, turning inside the area before curling an effort just over the far top corner.

23 minWe haven't seen much of Abraham, but the youngster has just displayed plenty of perseverance to keep hold of the ball in the final third. It eventually came to nothing, although Lampard will have no doubt been left impressed.

21 minLampard will be disappointed if Chelsea do not win this contest by a few goals. They are several classes above this St Patrick's side.

19 minA long raking pass is sent into the path of Palmieri who is constantly getting down the left flank. The Italian cuts the ball back for Batshuyai, but the forward's deliberate shot is blocked.

17 minSt Patrick's attempt to provide an immediate reply by winning a corner, but Chelsea are able to deal with the danger.

14 minIs this the first of many for Mount? Chelsea will hope so. Kovacic threads a fine pass through to the youngster, who takes a touch before dinking the ball past Murphy from close range.

14 minST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC 0-1 CHELSEA (MASON MOUNT)

14 minIt is early days and the opposition is not as strong as it will be in four weeks' time, but the diamond seems to suit Chelsea. Kovacic looks far more of a threat, too, on the left-hand side.

OFF THE BAR!

12 minBack come Chelsea as Mount drills a pass into Batshuayi on the edge of the area. The Belgian turns sharply before getting a powerful shot away, but the strike cannons off the top of the crossbar and goes behind.

11 minSt Patrick's offer their first threat at the other end, with Doona's inswinging cross just failing to find its target at the back post.

9 minThe use of the diamond means that full-backs Zappacosta and Palmieri are effectively being used as wing-backs. This could be a long afternoon for St Patrick's, who almost concede when Luiz's header across goal is not converted by Batshuyai at the back post.

7 minTomori has made a bright start for the visitors. The England Under-21 international has already made an important interception on the halfway line, as well as beginning a move from the back with a 40-yard pass.

5 minFrom the resulting corner, Tomori had the opportunity to get a header on target, only for his effort to be deflected wide. Chelsea look like they mean business today.