08/12/2007  Chelsea 2 Sunderland 0
 
Andriy Shevchenko celebrated his Chelsea return by spearheading the Barclays Premier League victory over Sunderland.

The Blues confirmed shortly before kick-off that top scorer Didier Drogba had undergone surgery to correct his troublesome knee and Shevchenko was the beneficiary.

The unsettled Ukraine striker was handed only his fifth league start of the season but did his chances of securing an extended run in the side no harm.

Strongly linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge in January, the Ukranian could yet have a crucial role to play for Chelsea over the hectic Christmas and New Year schedule.

His second Premiership goal of the season may only have been a routine finish of Salomon Kalou's 23rd minute cross, but it capped a lively display.

He will have met few more accommodating defences than Sunderland's but Chelsea manager Avram Grant will have drawn satisfaction from his display as he prepares for Drogba's absence.

But aside from flashes of brilliance from Kalou there was little else to cheer the Israeli as he watched his side toil to dispatch limited opposition.

It took Frank Lampard's conversion of a soft 79th minute penalty - given for Danny Higginbotham's weak pull on Alex - to kill off the match when Chelsea should have been out of sight sooner.

England winger Shaun Wright-Phillips endured an abysmal afternoon and failed to make any impact down the right as Sunderland clung on throughout.

Roy Keane's side scarcely mounted a meaningful attack all match and their limitations contributed to a lifeless clash that ended with Liam Miller's dismissal for pushing Claudio Pizarro in the face

Chelsea lacked inspiration other than Shevchenko but the win keeps up the pressure on Arsenal and Manchester United at the top of Premier League.

From the whistle Shevchenko looked sharp, showing composure with his first touch to release Ashley Cole in the opening minute.

Sunderland keeper Darren Ward punched clear Cole's cross as far as Wright-Phillips but the England winger's disappointing effort flew wide.

Kalou, who had escaped the attention of Danny Higginbotham, headed a Joe Cole corner at the crossbar as Chelsea persevered with their early assault

Wright-Phillips saw a penalty shout turned down by referee Peter Walton who was unmoved by his 11th-minute tangle with Dean Whitehead.

Sunderland were struggling to escape their own half and when they did manage to break free they ran down blind alleys before being relieved of the ball.

The Blues continued to probe away, despite being hampered by Wright-Phillips' woeful distribution, with Kalou a constant menace.

It was therefore fitting that Kalou was the provider as Chelsea eased ahead in the 23rd minute.

Juliano Belletti picked out Kalou from long range and the Ivorian sent a rapid cross to the far post where an unmarked Shevchenko was free to nod home.

The goal took some of the urgency out of Chelsea's game but with Sunderland unable to keep hold of the ball and proving toothless in attack, they were never under serious threat

Kenwyne Jones produced their first shot in the 34th minute but keeper Carlo Cudicini made light work of a tame effort.

Sunderland finally began to string some passes together shortly after but the move ended with a free-kick that Ross Wallace smashed into the stands.

The Kalou-Shevchenko axis nearly produced a second but the Ukraine marksman was off target this time.

The second half was greeted with constant rain as Chelsea emerged from the interval with greater urgency.

A slick manoeuvre by Shevchenko saw the ball dart across goal but no one was there to capitalise and then the Ukrainian himself over-ran a Joe Cole pass with the net beckoning.

He continued to make mincemeat of Sunderland's feeble defending, ghosting around Paul McShane and attempting to tee-up Kalou.

For all their possession and territory Chelsea were making heavy weather of finishing Sunderland off.

Mirroring the first half, the Black Cats appeared to have weathered the initial storm but with little to offer in attack themselves, the game once again resulted in dull stalemate.

Chelsea needed the help of Walton to secure the cushion their dominance deserved with the official harshly awarding a penalty against Higginbotham whose tug on Alex was minimal.

Lampard converted from the spot and Sunderland were dealt another blow with three minutes to go.

Claudio Pizarro appeared to aim a stamp towards Miller's foot and the Black Cats midfielder reacted by shoving the Chelsea substitute in the face.

Walton reached for the red card for an incident that is sure to incur the wrath of manager Roy Keane.