Chelsea were at their commanding best in the first half playing the sort of attacking, fluid football not associated with Mourinho teams. Eden Hazard was a gliding presence and Diego Costa as an intimidating son of a gun was playing true to nature. But it was Oscar with his curling, unstoppable free kick which skidded past Lukas Fabianski which got the Blues on the board. Not for too long.
The Swans through the effervescent Jefferson Montero who time and time again owned Branislav Ivanovic like he did Calum Chambers last season against Arsenal and it was the Ecuadorian setting up a cross for big unit Bafetimbi Gomis whose powerful header was pawed out by Thibaut Courtois last second. Andrew Ayew requiring all of 29 minutes in his debut was at hand to lash at the rebound which was blocked but second time around he controlled it and with a sweet shift to the left slammed the ball past Courtois.
The breathless pace continued and four minutes later Willian’s shot was sliced into goal by Federico Fernandez for an own goal. Chelsea were back on top. Undaunted, the Swans pushed on and Gomis’s shot was blocked and then Jonjo Shelvey’s corner heading into goal bounced off the upright. In the 55th minute, the former Liverpool midfielder and pantomime villain showed a classy touch by finding Gomis with a nicely measured ball and as the striker bore down, Courtois clumsily upended him with a raised leg to his thigh as he entered the box. Michael Oliver took a nanosecond to point to the spot and the red card. On the sidelines, Mourinho was muttering dire epithets with John Terry making himself a nuisance on the pitch which left Oliver with no choice but to card him.
Oscar was withdrawn and Asmir Begovic came on. Gomis was all unflappable cool, completely wrong footing the former Stoke City goalie. It was a powerful performance from a player’s whose playing career was in jeopardy for vasovagal syncope episodes. The Blues a man down did well to defend as well as launch some potent counterattacks with Fabianski having to come up with a blinding save off Hazard. But the Swans laid a marker down with this result at Stamford Bridge.
The message is clear. Gary Monk’s side showed you write off his side at your own peril.
Neuer would’ve sweeper keepered and cleared that ball well before it went in the box. Courtois could’ve done the same and avoided the red card. Either get back and try to block the shot or sweep it.