If Chelsea are to mount a belated defence of their Premier League title, they will have to play better than they did at Blackpool.
But crucially Carlo Ancelotti's side showed they can still win without hitting top gear as they claimed a 3-1 victory.January's £50million transfer Fernando Torres may have drawn yet another blank in his fifth match since joining from Liverpool, but fortunately for the Blues they did not need his goals.
There will come a time in the run-in when the Spain striker will have to produce the goods if they are to have a chance of reeling in Manchester United's nine-point advantage, even with a match in hand.
But at Bloomfield Road it was Chelsea's tried and tested players who did the job, with Frank Lampard scoring twice in the second half after captain John Terry had given them the lead before the interval.
