Jase

Looks like his was injury wasn't anything serious. Benitez apparently said it's just a dead leg. Should be back available for Basel on Thursday.

Happy Birthday to the genius Spaniard that is Juan Mata. And I believe today is the 1st time he has ever won a penalty for us.

Yup. Had GK saved it before and also ones where Lampard miss the target. He has missed actually. Portsmouth in the FA Cup Final back in 2010.

Yes! Just 2 more goals needed to break that record. :blue scalf: That aside, thought he did very well today. He certainly influenced our attacking play a lot after he came on. Offered a variety of attacking passes and penetration, gave us more attacking presence and lifted everyone around.

Was getting frustrated as the game went on in the 1st half but thankfully, we got the goals just before HT. Started the game slowly (again, though understandable with amount of games played) but we improved bit by bit and luckily it was good enough to break Swansea's bus! And credit has to go to Lampard for this. Even though his appearance came as a result of Ramires's injury (hope it's nothing serious), he made a great difference in our attacking play. Offered a variety of passes going forward, gave us more attacking presense upfront and lifted everyone around. After that, we kept Swansea out well but it's frustrating that we are not clinical in front of goal again. This could easily have ended up in a 4/5/6-0 win but didn't. *sigh* But overall, good win and a vital 3 points gained especially with Man United and Spurs to come next. Need to avoid defeat in those games especially the Spurs one but hope we can get at least 4 points from there.

Not anytime soon with how far the other countries' coefficient are behind us and poorly they are performing in UEFA competitions, as The Skipper has already alluded to. And I'm pretty sure our run in the Europa League is helping to boost that coefficient, even if its not that much compared to when winning in the Champions League.

Lineup vs Swansea - Cech, Azpilicueta, Terry, Cahill, Cole, Ramires, Luiz, Hazard, Mata, Oscar, Demba Ba.

C'mon Kieran. We're talking about cats here, not dogs. Don't spoil the party!

Well, the cat only respond half of the time. The other, it doesn't seem to bother much. So yeah.

Oh dear. It is from caughtoffside!

Two main ones. Just randomly encountered them near my place and 'took' them in. Whether they are owned cats? I don't know.

Looks like Lukaku kissed the West Brom badge after scoring today..

Just to clarify, that cat in the picture is not mine. But yeah, I still do 'own' some cats.

@Rmpr, Why? Not happy with my work?!

Because the Newcastle last season is much better than this season and we are much better now than we were last season...

Here's the Opposition Views for this game.

SwansBlog was helpful in taking some time out to answer a few questions ahead of Sunday's important clash at Stamford Bridge. Here are the thoughts: 1. What have you made of Swansea’s season so far especially after, perhaps unexpectedly, claiming the Capital One Cup trophy? Yet another season where we've defied all the pre-season predictions and exceeded our own expectations. Now the aim has to be to secure that top ten spot and better last seasons 11th place finish. Winning our first major trophy and getting to play in Europe next season is unbelievable but the league still has to be the priority. 2. Much has been made about the smooth transition of Michael Laudrup into English football this season with your team. What do you think has been the difference between Laudrup’s Swansea and Brendan Rodgers’s Swansea? Without a doubt we've been a bit more direct and scored more goals under Michael Laudrup. He still likes to see us retain possession likes Brendan Rodgers did and other managers before him but he's made us more ruthless in attack. Our transition from defence or when we win possession to attack is a lot quicker and more direct. 3. Are there any aspects with your team that have disappointed you this season and think you can improve on? Why? An area which has constantly been a thorn in our side is defending set pieces. Even before Michael Laudrup arrived at the club it's never been our strongest area and I really hope we can improve next season. 4. You will be playing in more games next season due to your involvement in the Europa League. How do you think Laudrup should go about managing the squad especially with the demands of the Premier League? I don't think too much will change, he likes to make a tweak or two for every match to keep players fresh and maintain that competition in the squad so it won't be unfamiliar to the players next season. Hopefully we can add three or four new faces that will improve the group, give that little extra competition for places and allow him to rotate and guard against fatigue towards the end of the season. 5. What are your expectations for next season on your team? Reaching 40 as soon as possible still has to be the main target. A decent run in Europe would be nice as well although combining both can be tough, especially as this is something we have no experience of. You only have to look at Newcastle to see how a decent run in the Europa League coupled with a few key injuries can derail your season so getting those 40 points is a must. Finishing above Cardiff would be great too. 6. Who has been your Player of the Season at Swansea? Why? It's so difficult to pick one out this season, so I'll go for the two that should have been on the PFA player of the year shortlists. Obviously Michu has been outstanding, his goals have pushed up a level and he's been key to our success grabbing many headlines throughout the season. There is also our young full-back Ben Davies who stepped in for the injured Neil Taylor early in the season. He's had a remarkable season for someone enjoying his first taste of first team football, it'll be tough for Taylor to regain his spot. 7. The reverse fixture ended in a cagey and tight 1-1 draw. Do you expect a similar game tomorrow? Not at all. I expect Chelsea to go all out tomorrow in pursuit of that final Champions League spot and it should be a very entertaining game. 8. You only lost once to us in 5 matches in all competitions (W1 D3 L1) since getting promoted to the Premier League last season. Why do you think your team seem to be able to match Chelsea in those games so far? Our ability to retain possession and more importantly how we press when we havent got the ball and as a result we've been difficult to score against. I don't think it is something the bigger clubs are used to when facing the smaller teams so perhaps we've caught a few teams out. 9. If you could take 1 current Chelsea player to Swansea, who would it be and why? Easy, Juan Mata. His awareness of where others are around him is exceptional and his ability to play that killer pass is superb, plus he can score a goal. He's also Spanish so he would have no trouble fitting in with all the other Spaniards at the club. 10. What line-up and formation Michael Laudrup is likely to put out tomorrow? GK: Vorm; RB: Rangel, CB: Chico, CB: Williams; LB: Taylor; DM: Britton, CM: Ki Sung-Yueng, CM: de Guzman; WL: Pablo H, WR: Dyer, FW: Michu 11. What is your prediction for this game? Chelsea to win by one goal.

Pochettino targeting Champions League assault with Southampton Said he wants to finish in Top 4 in next 2 years!

TBH, I have no idea why people always seem to go all pissed off whenever they discuss about Neymar... Anyway, stick to talking about Neymar unless you guys want to receive warning points for derailing a thread and abusing other members!

We have actually only lost 1 match in all competitions since last season whenever Mata has assisted in a match. The record reads - W31 D6 L1.

http://www.chelseafc.com/news-article/article/3159264/title/mata-direct-action Mata talking about free kicks. And he also spoke about his birthday tomorrow.

Some just come out and give a diplomatic answer. Can't be saying something bad about Benitez, even if they don't like him and/or we want them to. As for what Azpi said there about being tactically better, don't think anyone can really deny that. Under RDM, we may have played the best football this season but tactically, we were a mess. Defensively, especially, we were all over the place and conceding ridiculous goals on a regulas basis. There's just no shape, cohesion and organization to the team then and it's one of the reasons, if not THE reason why we got KOed of the group stage in the Champions League. Even though we still give away silly goals under Benitez, at least the team don't look as open and exposed as before giving us a bit more solidity.

Right. Spurs drew against Wigan. 2-2. We're still in 4th then. Level on points with Spurs - 62 - but have played a game less. Win tomorrow and we'll go 3pts clear.

Pundit forced to eat rat on live radio after doubting Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta