Goals either side of the break from Eden Hazard and Diego Costa eased Chelsea to a 2-0 victory over 10-man Hull City at Stamford Bridge this afternoon.
It took Hazard only seven minutes to break the deadlock in London, before Hull midfielder Tom Huddlestone was handed his marching orders on the hour mark.
Just eight minutes later, the Blues made their numerical advantage count when Costa rolled in his 12th Premier League goal of the season.
Here, Sports Mole has looked back over the contest to determine if the result was a fair one, or whether the scoreline flattered the hosts.
Match statistics
CHELSEA
Shots: 12
On target: 3
Possession: 60%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 13
HULL
Shots: 8
On target: 0
Possession: 40%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 13
Was the result fair?
The hosting Blues were well short of their best today, but they still did more than enough to be worthy winners. They created the better chances, controlled the possession and thwarted Hull on the rare occasions that they did venture forward. While it was by no means an encounter that will live long in the memory, Chelsea certainly deserved the three points that has kept them clear of Manchester City at the top.
Chelsea's performance
Essentially, the victory is all that matters where Chelsea are concerned, but Jose Mourinho is bound to be disappointed with much of his side's performance. He showed as much throughout the clash as he prowled the touchline, regularly barking out orders to his players.
Not that it was not already clear, but today's outing showed just how vital the suspended Cesc Fabregas is to Chelsea. Nemanja Matic's qualities are well known and John Obi Mikel is comfortable when in the holding role, but neither is capable of splitting open a defence in the same manner as the Spaniard. For all of Chelsea's possession, they did not create as many clear-cut openings they would have expected.
On the plus side, Hazard was once again lively, while defensively, when Hull did get forward, the likes of John Terry and Gary Cahill were on hand to snuff out any danger. All in all it was of a case of getting the three points and moving on for Mourinho's men.
Hull's performance
In the early exchanges, Hull were on the ropes. Indeed, when Hazard scored, it seemed that the match could have been heading for a cricket score. However, Steve Bruce's team remained organised and actually grew in confidence towards the end of the first half.
That continued after the restart, but Huddlestone's red card ended their slim chance of taking anything from the encounter. Again, it would have been easy for Hull to fold when Costa scored Chelsea's second, but they kept going and ensured that they were not on the receiving end of a hiding.
While it is now no win in nine for Hull, Bruce can at least take some confidence from the fact that his side did not allow their heads to drop. It still seems that his players are playing for him and have belief in what he is trying to do. At the end of the day, though, they need victories, and quickly.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Eden Hazard: Without the influence of Fabregas, the onus was on Hazard to be Chelsea's creative heartbeat. He certainly did not shirk that responsibility, and even broke the deadlock early on. After that, he went on numerous unpredictable dribbles that caused Hull problems, before he assisted Costa for the second goal. Despite that, he also gave the impression at times that he had more gears to go through, which is a frightening prospect indeed.
Biggest gaffe
This can go to the entire Hull defence for allowing Hazard to open the scoring in the seventh minute. The Belgian is known for having many qualities, one of which is not heading. Yet, he was left all alone inside the Hull box to nod in Oscar's pinpoint cross. Had he dribbled through his side apart in scoring the goal, Bruce may have accepted that, but seeing the little playmaker head in the game's opener will have been difficult to stomach.
Referee performance
It was a real mixed display from Chris Foy, who was rather card happy. To his credit, many of the cautions were deserved, while he was also correct to hand a straight red card to Huddlestone for his lunge on Filipe Luis. Yet, while nobody likes to see players being dismissed, Foy had two chances to send off Cahill before Huddlestone rightly walked, and he took neither of them. The Chelsea defender planted his studs into Sone Aluko - for which he was only cautioned - and then took a blatant dive in the second half, which bizarrely went unpunished by the official. Bruce, understandably, was not happy.
What next?
Chelsea: On Tuesday, Mourinho's men turn their attention to the League Cup quarter-finals when they travel to Championship high-flyers Derby County. In terms of the Premier League, Chelsea face Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium a week on Monday.
Hull: As for the Tigers, they return to the home comforts of the KC Stadium a week today with the visit of Swansea City.
Liam Apicella
