Chelsea’s first game of the season saw the Premier League debuts of Eden Hazard and Oscar, two signings that Roberto Di Matteo hopes will inject youthful energy into his side. And the new signings didn’t disappoint at the DW Stadium, as Hazard was instrumental in creating both the goals. The first came just two minutes into the game when Chelsea broke out of their own box. Hazard turned superbly round Wigan midfielder Ivan Ramis and passed to Ivanovic. The Serbian controlled the ball well and shot powerfully into the top right hand corner.

Five minutes later Ramis was again at fault when the visitors doubled their lead. Hazard made a dangerous incursion into the Wigan box and Ramis clumsily fouled him. There was no doubt it was a penalty and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. While Lampard subsequent penalty wasn’t his greatest, it was still enough to beat Ali Al-Habsi. Chelsea should have had a second penalty soon afterward when Torres was fouled in the box, however the referee waved this one on.

Surprisingly, Wigan didn’t collapse and even started creating chances of their own towards then end of the first half. Di Santo had their best chance when Shaun Maloney’s through ball found the striker in space. However the Argentinian’s first touch was too heavy and he failed to get any power in his shot which Cech saved.

Wigan’s Ramis gained some redemption in the second half when he prevented Torres from scoring. The Spanish striker had fought his way into the box and his shot had beat Al-Habsi. However Ramis sprinted towards goal and cleared the ball just before  it cross the line. The second half also saw Oscar come on as a substitute. He had his only significant chance in the 68th minute when he had a shot from outside the box which went wide of the post.

But it was Wigan who were more impressive in the closing stages of the game. However their inability to hit the target – a problem that plagued them all season – meant they couldn’t make a mark on the score sheet. First Di Santo had a close range header shot wide and then their new signing Kone had also miss the mark. 

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