Jose Mourinho's Chelsea allowed Liverpool plenty of the ball in the first half and then stole the lead just before the break in this afternoon's top-of-the-table Premier League clash at Anfield.
Despite a starting lineup far from full strength, Chelsea were the ones to have the first effort on goal through Ashley Cole, whose 25-yard shot was parried away by Simon Mignolet.
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The Blues appeared to be employing sly time-wasting tactics from the outset, but Liverpool created an opening just after 10 minutes when Luis Suarez floated a diagonal ball to the back post, where Coutinho side-footed a volley into the side-netting.
The Reds went close again soon after when Suarez volleyed powerfully across the area, and Mamadou Sakho failed to control his shot and skied over the bar.
Eight minutes before the break Chelsea felt that they should have had a penalty when Mohamed Salah's shot clearly struck Jon Flanagan's arm, but referee Martin Atkinson didn't agree.
Suarez then flashed a shot over before Chelsea sneaked in front. Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard slipped in the middle of the park, allowing Demba Ba to race through on goal and slide the ball under Mignolet.
As things stand, Chelsea will close the gap on Liverpool to just two points with two games left.
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Pascal Lemesre
