Chelsea 2-0 Porto: 5 talking points

Chelsea made a mockery of their domestic woes on Wednesday night by brushing aside Porto in a lively Stamford Bridge to qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League. Jose Mourinho’s side – currently languishing at 14th in the league with 15 points from as many games – ensured that the result against his former club also helped them top the group, giving them possibly a favourable draw in the first knockout round. More than the result, it was the massive contrast in the performance from the one against the 0-1 defeat to Premier League whipping boys Bournemouth which would have non-plussed Jose Mourinho as to why the same purpose of play could not be recreated in the Premier League, leaving them in this embarrassing predicament as far as the points table is concerned.Obviously enough, the 52 year-old rung in a few changes from Saturday's defeat, and that proved to be critical in Chelsea’s positive result on Wednesday. We take a closer look at some of the key incidents that may have decided the game yesterday.

#1 Costa is back!

Costa looked to be back to his temperamental best last night

After being benched by Mourinho for the last 2 league games, Mourinho turned back to his Spanish goal-machine in Diego Costa to deliver the goods when it really mattered. And he didn’t disappoint. His desire to be back in contention for first-team football showed on the pitch when he forced the first goal, which unluckily rebounded off Marcano into his own net.

A forward who likes to work with the ball around the penalty area, the 27-year-old had a positive influence in Chelsea’s dominant display, completing 3 dribbles and winning as many as 3 aerials in the opposition half. His all-round game has put his poor run of form behind him, and with a busy Christmas period coming up, Mourinho will be hoping the Brazilian-born striker maintains this level of performance over the next few weeks.

#2 Ramires, the old-guard, shines

Ramires put in a solid shift and justified his inclusion in the squad ahead of Fabregas

Alterations in the Chelsea starting XI were inevitable in the back of their below-par display against the Cherries on Saturday. But no one would have anticipated that it would be Spanish playmaker Cesc Fabregas to give way.

Realising the need of a player who had the experience of playing these kind of games where an unfavourable result would send them out of the tournament, Mourinho decided to give the nod to long-serving midfielder Ramires.

The decision proved to be spot-on as he – along with Nemanja Matic – shielded the Chelsea defence with great assurance, making 13 tackles in total (7 for Ramires) to deny the midfield trio of Hector Herrera, Danilo Pereira and Giannelli Imbula from encroaching into the Chelsea box.

The Brazilian may not have the same incisive vision as Fabregas, but his intense display in the middle of the pitch with his tackling and forward passing helped him maintain his credentials of a big-match player in the Chelsea squad.

#3 Poor finishing from Porto\'s front two

The frontline of Julen Lopetegui’s side never really caused the Chelsea defense any peril on the night

Needing a victory to go through to the knockout stage, it was no surprise to see Porto manager Julen Lopetegui starting with two wingers up front. Jesus Manuel Corona and Yacine Brahimi were a duo who would give John Terry and Kurt Zouma a run for their money with their pace on the break. The fact that 18 dribbles were completed between the two reflected their threat upfront.

But in order to score, one needed a natural striker to come up with the shooting boots. That was missing, and as a result, Porto hardly managed to test Thibaut Courtois in goal, failing to get a single shot on target in the first-half, while only forcing him to sting his gloves on 3 occasions in the second half.

The lack of finishing prowess from Brahimi and Corona ultimately cost Porto a place in the knockouts, and they will have to be content with a place in the second tier of European football, a.k.a the Europa League.

#4 Zouma - a world-class centre back in the making?

The Frenchman is one of the brightest young defenders in world football

One of Chelsea’s biggest reasons for their stuttering start to the season has been their instability and loss of organisation at the back, leaking goal after goal to give away matches. Any doubts of those re-surfacing on Wednesday were quickly put to bed by their 21-year-old centre-back, Kurt Zouma.

The well-built Frenchman displayed his authoritativeness alongside captain John Terry, keeping his composure despite the pace of Brahimi and Corona to keep up with the duo and making those last-ditch tackles to prevent them from having a go at goal. His last ditch tackle to stop Brahimi in his tracks in the 75th minute makes him an exciting prospect for the Blues in the future.

#5 Eden Hazard back in the mix

Mourinho would be hoping Hazard has turned the corner after his performance against Porto

Heavily lambasted for his ineffective performances throughout the season, Eden Hazard seems to have identified this game to bring all his critics to the ground. The 24-year-old was heavily involved in Chelsea’s intensity-filled performance on Wednesday, using most of his fleet-footed attributes to good effect.

Right wing-back Maxi Pereira bore the brunt of the Belgian’s trickery with the ball and was never able to sort his feet out against last year’s PFA Player of the Year throughout the 90 minutes. With 3 dribbles completed, a shot against the woodwork and an assist to set up a thumping effort by Willian in the 52nd minute, it was a rare night to cherish for the former Lille man this season.