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Premier League, Stamford Bridge – Chelsea 4 (Torres 14, Lampard 22, Hazard 31, Ivanovic 76) Norwich 1 (Holt 11).

Chelsea cemented top spot in the Premier League with an attacking masterclass, romping to a 4-1 win over Norwich at Stamford Bridge.

Grant Holt gave struggling Norwich an early lead against the run of play after 11 minutes, but Fernando Torres levelled three minutes later, before Frank Lampard and Eden Hazard scored delightful goals to put the Blues comfortably ahead after half an hour.

In the second half it might easily have been a rout as Oscar, Juan Mata and Hazard took centre-stage, but in the end Chelsea managed only one more, a sumptuous volley from Branislav Ivanovic 76 minutes in.

The Blues will finish the weekend four points clear at the top of the table, while Norwich remain stranded near the foot of the league.

Roberto di Matteo’s decision to include both Ashley Cole and John Terry stole the headlines, but it was his attacking combination which had more of an impact on the match.

With the unbeaten league leaders hosting the winless Canaries, only one result looked likely, but Holt’s early strike gave the Blues an early scare.

It was a well-worked move – Wes Hoolahan running unchecked before picking out Sebastian Bassong in the box, who nodded down for Holt to rifle past Petr Cech.

But the lead was short-lived. Torres, who had spurned an early chance with hesitancy after being played in over the top, got on the end of a cross from Ivanovic and glanced past John Ruddy to level.

Chelsea kept attacking, and the second came after Torres attempted an overhead kick. It was blocked – but straight into the path of Lampard, whose finish was clinical.

The Blues were not watertight at the back and Norwich did have their chances – Alexander Tettey had got into a great position up front only to completely misjudge his header.

But it left them exposed to the counter-attack, and they were undone for the third by a superb break led by Mata. The Spaniard went most of the length of the field laying on a deft through ball for Hazard, who knocked it first-time into the corner.

The chances rained down during the second half – Holt, along with Hoolahan the bright spots in a tame display for Norwich, nodded just wide at the far post for the visitors before Chelsea resumed normal service.

There were at least two clear penalty chances that the Blues were denied – Hazard was bodychecked by Leon Barnett chasing a lost cause of a ball, while Terry’s shirt was clearly pulled by Martin when he tried to head in at the far post late on.

Meanwhile Oscar tested Ruddy out from distance, Mata almost rounded off a flowing team move with a finish past the Norwich keeper, while Torres came close on a number of occasions.

Despite the combination of attacking talent, Chelsea’s only goal of the half came from a defender.

Oscar put in the cross from the left-hand side, Mata flicked it back in towards the middle, and Ivanovic with all the poise of a striker crashed the ball in at the near post.

Ivanovic may be a right-back, but with six Premier League goals in 2012, he has only been outscored by Fernando Torres (eight) and Frank Lampard (seven) for the Blues this year.

Norwich avoided further damage on the scoresheet, but with their next Premier League fixture pitting them against Arsenal, Chris Hughton's task of getting a first Premier League win with the Canaries looks a tricky one.

For Chelsea, who were able to give a late Premier League debut to Cesar Azpilicueta and a first top flight appearance of the season for Oriol Romeu, the team look in great shape, despite the notable off-field distractions, going into the international break.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Juan Mata (Chelsea) – To stand out in an attacking midfield boasting Oscar and Hazard says something about the calibre of Mata’s performance.

Premier League, Emirates Stadium – Arsenal 1 (Gervinho 42) Chelsea 2 (Torres 20, Mata 53).

Chelsea beat Arsenal 2-1 at Emirates Stadium to stay top of the Premier League and maintain their unbeaten start to the domestic season.

John Terry's every touch was booed enthusiastically by the home fans in light of his impending four-match ban for racially abusing Anton Ferdinand, but he ended up on top as Chelsea won a lively London derby.

Goals from Fernando Torres and Juan Mata did the damage, although Arsenal gave them a hand as their inability to defend set pieces was exposed for a second weekend running.

Gervinho was on target for the Gunners, who had lengthy spells of possession but were unable to create enough chances as Petr Cech only made two saves of note all match, although substitute Olivier Giroud hit the woodwork before putting a good opportunity wide in injury time.

It was Arsenal’s first defeat of the campaign, while their Chelsea hoodoo continues: the Blues are the first team to beat Arsene Wenger’s side three times in a row in the Premier League at the Emirates.

A frantic first half finished even as both sides attacked with vigour, Chelsea getting the better of the opening exchanges as Torres netted his 75th career Premier League goal at the expense of Laurent Koscielny and co.

Last weekend the Gunners’ zonal marking was criticised as they conceded to Manchester City at a set-piece, but their failure to attack the ball was at fault then as it was now, although their man-marking was exposed this time.

A superbly weighted Mata free-kick saw Koscielny fail in his task as a man-marker, allowing Torres to hook a leg around his torso and flick an improvised finish past Vito Mannone.

It was not all Koscielny’s fault as the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – who had just entered play following another injury to poor Abou Diaby – allowed David Luiz and John Terry the freedom of the box before Torres’s intervention.

While a lapse in organisation was at play, it was a deserved goal in the sense that Chelsea - with three attacking midfielders - had pressed and harried Arsenal from the off, their style of chasing and clever passing echoing that of Barcelona.

Chelsea should have gone 2-0 up when Koscielny fluffed his lines under pressure from Torres, who went clean through but – in electing to round Mannone instead of finish directly – fell over under pressure from the chasing centre-back.

The Spaniard wanted a penalty but the minimal contact was a result of his swinging boot catching Koscielny’s as opposed to any intent on the defender’s part.

The hosts responded well, using overlapping full-backs Keiran Gibbs and the excellent Carl Jenkinson to great effect as they launched waves of attacks.

Gervinho, leading the line as Giroud watched on, should have done better with a far-post header from Lukas Podolski’s driven cross, the Ivorian’s effort across goal well-fielded by Terry.

Chelsea were dangerous on the break, Torres just offside as he finished from a sweet Mata through ball, but Arsenal’s equaliser was always on the cards.

Jenkinson, who has taken to his attacking right-back role with gusto and surprise given his shaky displays last season, was involved in much of Arsenal’s forward play and it was one of his runs that saw Oxlade-Chamberlain released down the right.

His low ball picked out Gervinho, who turned before firing an unstoppable effort into the top right, a finish out of keeping with the Ivorian’s oft-disappointing end product.

There was still time for Torres to find the side netting after a counter attack that marked Chelsea’s increased tendency to sit deeper into half-time.

The second half continued with the pattern of Arsenal possession and Chelsea counters, with the visitors more effective than the hosts, whose afternoon was typified by Cazorla’s wild finish from a good spot, one of many poor shots from the talented Spaniard.

Chelsea were soon back in front as Mata again showed his quality with the dead ball, this time swinging it beyond everyone bar the lunging Koscielny, who got a touch as it flew past Mannone to the bottom left. The ball was on target so Mata was credited with the goal, but ball-watching Arsenal again should have dealt with it.

Arsenal responded with possession-driven attacks but it was worth nothing that Cech made his first proper save just before the hour mark, tipping a Lukas Podolski header over.

Jenkinson and Gibbs were leading the charge at will but, despite some dangerous crosses, Arsenal were second to the ball in the vital areas.

Giroud and Theo Walcott were brought into the fold but the former, for all his undoubted effort, looks short of the quality required to be a main striker at this level.

He inadvertently came close to a leveller when his low shot took a huge deflection off David Luiz, but Cech palmed it wide for a corner, while a flicked header from a corner touched the woodwork, although a flag went up in the melee.

Chelsea had men behind the ball but still countered with intent, sub Victor Moses close to a spectacular half-volleyed goal that dipped just over.

Arsenal were throwing everything at the Blues, who tried to run it into the corner at every opportunity, although the hosts still carved out enough chances to grab a point. Cazorla smacked one high and wide when he should have at least made Cech work, while in stoppage time Giroud showed poor composure when put through by the aforementioned Spain midfielder, taking an extra touch wide before hammering his finish into the side netting.

Chelsea’s win – their first in 33 against Arsenal without Didier Drogba in the team – cements their claim to being the form side in England, while Arsenal must look to bounce back from disappointment, an inability to do so having marked recent seasons.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Juan Mata (Chelsea) – His dead-ball delivery is second-to-none and the Spaniard was on song today, creating the first and scoring the second as he exploited Arsenal’s hesitancy at set pieces.

Premier League, Stamford Bridge – Chelsea 1 (Cole 85), Stoke City 0.

Chelsea left it late before sealing a hard-fought 1-0 against Stoke City at Stamford Bridge that keeps them top of the Premier League table.

A week after their stalemate away to local rivals Queens Park Rangers and their 2-2 Champions League draw at home to Juventus in midweek, the Blues looked destined for a third straight draw before Ashley Cole popped up with the winner with just four minutes remaining.

Left-back Cole scored his first goal for Chelsea since May 2010 by rounding off an aesthetically-pleasing team move.

After beginning the season with four straight draws, Stoke suffered their first defeat of the new campaign. The Potters are now without a win in their last 12 games, since a 2-1 win over Wolves on April 7.

The win puts Chelsea three points clear at the top of the table, ensuring they will finish the weekend as league leaders. Stoke remain in the bottom half with four points from five games.

Following his stunning goal as part of his brace against Juventus, Brazilian midfielder Oscar was given his first Premier League start by manager Roberto Di Matteo.

The club's two most senior players – club captain John Terry and vice-captain Frank Lampard – who named on the bench following their European exertions, with Gary Cahill and Juan Mata coming in.

The tone was set early on as Mata and Eden Hazard orchestrated plenty of possession in the Stoke half, but the visitors stayed resolute and kept the corner count steadily rising but the scoreboard unchanged.

Fernando Torres rose to meet one of those corners seven minutes in but the Spaniard – who has now scored just once in seven Premier League matches against Stoke – sent his header over the bar.

On the one occasion Chelsea played their way through, Torres took Mata's chipped pass nicely on his chest but swung at thin air as he tried to finish past goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.

Branislav Ivanovic was fortunate to escape a booking from referee Michael Oliver for a shameless dive in the area midway through the first half, while Charlie Adam was not so lucky moments later when he clumsily manhandled Ramires.

Robert Huth avoided the same fate when Oscar cheekily turned and nutmegged him with one slick touch and pivot. The German defender did not take kindly to such finesse and hauled the young Brazilian back.

Stoke only had five shots to Chelsea's 12 in the first half, but they had the two best chances to break the deadlock.

Jonathan Walters headed an excellent free-kick delivery from Glenn Whelan against the bar before Marc Wilson's thundering strike across the area was guided on target by Michael Kightly only for Petr Cech to make a good reaction save low to his left.

In the second half Oscar showed a propensity for acting that will have headline writers rubbing their hands with glee when he was booked for a theatrical dive in search of a penalty.

Soon afterwards, however, he gave a reminder of his ability with the ball when he almost recreated his strike against Juve, taking his marker out of the game with a swift turn before arrowing a low strike just wide.

Michael Owen came off the bench for his second Stoke appearance, but he was mainly deployed as an extra body in midfield. Peter Crouch came closest to scoring for Stoke in the second half but he couldn't reach a corner whipped across the six-yard box with an outstretched leg.

Crouch was later replaced by Kenwyne Jones, who teed up fellow substitute Matthew Etherington for a strike but the winger fired wide.

With time running out and club owner Roman Abramovich looking distinctly unimpressed, Di Matteo brought on Lampard and the veteran soon made his presence felt. Lampard played an early part in an attack which became a one-touch move, culminating in Juan Mata casually backheeling into Cole's path and Begovic couldn't keep the England defender's close-range finish out.

Chelsea centre-back David Luiz was perhaps fortunate to avoid a red card in stoppage time for his lunging tackle on Walters as the striker attempted to launch a counter-attack. The melee that ensued helped kill any late momentum Stoke were trying to build as their search for an equaliser ended in vain.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Juan Mata (Chelsea) – With all the fuss over Chelsea's summer signings, Mata gave a reminder of why he was the club's player of the year last season with a performance full of creativity, culminating in his assist for the winner.

Premier League, Loftus Road - Queens Park Rangers 0 Chelsea 0.

QPR and Chelsea played out a 0-0 stalemate at Loftus Road after Anton Ferdinand snubbed John Terry and Ashley Cole pre-match.

Chelsea's 100 per cent league record came to an end at the home of their West London rivals, where Ferdinand, Terry and Cole took centre-stage following last season's race allegations which culminated in a not guilty verdict for Terry in July.

QPR debutant Julio Cesar impressed in goal with a string of solid saves while Bobby Zamora had an effort cleared off the line in the second half after a horror back pass attempt by John Obi Mikel.

But a heated affair did not ultimately produce any goals and Roberto Di Matteo's side remain top of the league on 10 points despite victories for Manchester United and Arsenal elsewhere.

The Hoops, meanwhile, remain near the foot of the table, still without their first league win.

Before a ball had been kicked, the match was making headlines when Ferdinand opted not to shake the hands of either Terry or Cole during the pre-match ritual, which had been abandoned altogether the previous season when the clubs last met.

Words were had between centre-backs Terry and Ferdinand before the hostilities transitioned into the alleged centrepiece of the afternoon – the actual football match – in a tense and scrappy opening period.

Ramires and Ryan Bertrand both picked up first-half bookings as Rangers – managed by ex-Chelsea man Mark Hughes, settled into the game the quickest.

The lion’s share of the decent chances came the way of the European champions, however, with Cesar forced to make a pair of excellent blocks to deny first Eden Hazard and then Fernando Torres.

Fabio had a penalty claim waved away by referee Andre Marriner when he collided with David Luiz on the left-hand edge of the Chelsea box, before Hazard went down in the opposite area under pressure from Shaun Wright-Phillips, only to receive the same response.

The hosts lost two players early on to injury as Fabio and Andrew Johnson each pulled up with little over half an hour played, restricting their control of the tempo with the departure of two of their most creative players in the early stages.

A hotly-contested opening 10 minutes of the second half had little in the way of serious chances until home captain Park Ji-sung headed a delicious cross from Esteban Granero into the arms of Petr Cech.

Minutes later, a mistake from substitute Nedum Onuoha let Hazard in but his deft flick to put Torres in with a chance at goal was poorly controlled by the Spaniard.

With 13 minutes to go, that error was topped in a big way by Mikel when his back pass was underscored and Zamora pounced, only to blink first in the stand-off in front of goal with Cech, allowing the Czech to do enough to delay the striker.

By the time he pulled off a chance at goal, black shirts were back to block its path and a subsequent breakaway led to Victor Moses forcing another decent parry from Cesar in the former Wigan man’s cameo from the bench.

Four minutes from time, Hazard should have won the game for his side only to blast a point-blank opportunity over after Branislav Ivanovic cut inside from the right to find Moses, whose low cross found the Belgian 10 yards from goal with precision.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Julio Cesar (Queens Park Rangers) – Rob Green's autumn went from bad to worse as the former Inter Milan stopper made an impressive home debut for his new employers with a string of saves.

Chelsea made it three wins out of three at the start of the Premier League season as the brilliant Eden Hazard scored and then claimed yet another assist in a 2-0 defeat of Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge.

The Belgian forward, purchased from Lille for a fee of £32 million this summer, had already created five goals in just two matches for Chelsea prior to Saturday evening's game, which took place amid a deluge of rain in West London.

And when Fernando Torres was brought to ground by Vurnon Anita after 22 minutes, responsibility for the penalty was handed to Hazard with Frank Lampard sitting on the bench and he struck the ball home with all the confidence of a man who has settled in immediately to Premier League football.

When Chelsea extended their lead in first-half injury time, it was inevitably Hazard who rolled the ball backwards impudently for Torres to toe-poke a brilliant shot into the top corner, his creative instincts continuing to help deliver a new brand of football from a side who relied on oppressively negative tactics to win the Champions League last season.

Chelsea were forced to do without captain John Terry due to a neck injury while Lampard, in a nod to his advancing years, was rested from the starting XI. Newcastle meanwhile made nine changes from their European fixture in midweek, with Anita replacing the injured Cheick Tiote for his full Premier League debut following a transfer from Ajax.

While Chelsea's new signings Cesar Azpilicueta and Victor Moses were presented to the Stamford Bridge crowd prior to kick-off - their acquisitions on Friday taking the club's summer spending past the £80 million mark - it was the most lucrative of the new arrivals whom all eyes were focused on.

Having created five of Chelsea's six goals in their opening two games of the season, Hazard has already developed quite the reputation in the Premier League and stationed out on the right against Newcastle he looked intent on wreaking yet more havoc.

After 14 minutes the Belgium international drifted inside, collected a short pass from John Obi Mikel and had a shot from 20 yards that lacked the precision or pace to trouble Tim Krul in the Newcastle goal. Team-mate Ryan Bertrand had a better chance soon after but also hit the ball too close to the Dutchman.

Chelsea posed only an intermittent threat but on 22 minutes Torres sprung to life as he surged into the box and drew a clumsy challenge from Anita. Phil Dowd pointed towards the penalty spot and Hazard continued his wonderful start to the season with the 10th conversion in 10 penalty attempts during his professional career, slotting the ball out of the reach of Krul.

Branislav Ivanovic - another one of the stars of Chelsea's early campaign with two goals to his name - threatened again when connecting with an Ashley Cole cross with a firm header, while Hazard then combined with Juan Mata before the Spaniard tried to cross for Torres when a shot would have been the superior option.

Torres was a more sprightly presence following his key intervention for the penalty, and the Euro 2012 Golden Boot winner thought he had Fabricio Coloccini in trouble after being brought to ground by the defender as he skipped away from him. However, Phil Dowd misread the situation and angered Torres by booking him for diving.

With Newcastle restricted to a half-chance from Papiss Cisse that saw the striker turn quickly and test Petr Cech with a firm shot, Chelsea extended their lead deep into first half injury time. Torres slipped the ball into Hazard, who returned the favour with a lovely flick into the path of the Spaniard. Spotting a gap in the top corner , Torres toe-poked a lovely shot out of the reach of Krul for 2-0.

Newcastle were a renewed force after the break and placed Chelsea under considerable pressure with a number of shots from range. Demba Ba then drove into the box following a mistake from Mikel to force Cech into a smart save from a tight angle.

However, Chelsea always looked threatening on the break and almost got in behind on 61 minutes when Torres muscled Anita off the ball in the box. Displaying the fresh flood of confidence flowing through his veins, the Spaniard even attempted a 'Rabona' cross but failed to pick out Mata when placing one leg behind the other and punting the ball into the middle.

Newcastle carved out perhaps their finest chance of the game after 68 minutes when substitute Ryan Taylor delivered a teasing, deep cross to the back post. However, Cisse - scorer of two otherworldly goals at Stamford Bridge last season - could not keep his header on target despite being left free in the box.

By contrast, Hazard was a constant menace and with 10 minutes remaining he almost picked out Ramires for a third goal after thundering into the box. The ball fell to Bertrand, who saw Krul get an outstretched finger to his shot and tip the ball round the post.

Newcastle could have ensured a tense conclusion when a cross from Sylvain Marveaux was headed back to Ba. Though he missed the ball at the first attempt, Ba's second effort was low and hard but Cech pulled off a fantastic save to protect Chelsea's 2-0 lead.

Hazard and Torres had done their job: Chelsea's stylish start to the season continued.

Chelsea survived an almighty scare to beat promoted Reading 4-2 in a topsy-turvy Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea survived an almighty scare to beat promoted Reading 4-2 in a topsy-turvy Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge.

The European champions appeared to be cruising when Frank Lampard converted an 18th-minute penalty to cap a dominant early spell for the hosts.

But a Pavel Pogrebnyak header - his first goal for the club - levelled on 25 minutes, with the Championship champions edging ahead soon afterwards when a blunder from Petr Cech allowed Danny Guthrie to open his Reading account.

Chelsea were struggling and looked bereft of ideas but, after a smart tactical switch by Roberto Di Matteo midway through the second half, they drew level when another goalkeeping error from Adam Federici saw Gary Cahill net from distance.

The West London side then took the lead in controversial circumstances with 10 minutes remaining when an offside-looking Fernando Torres tapped in Ashley Cole's low cross after a lovely passing move.

Reading went gung-ho in search of a late equaliser and, in the fifth minute of injury time, Chelsea added a fourth when Federici was stranded after coming up for a corner, Branislav Ivanovic rolling the ball into the empty net after Eden Hazard had broken free.

The victory means Chelsea go top of the fledgling Premier League for a few days at least, although that could change at the weekend. Reading boss Brian McDermott, meanwhile, must decide whether he can trust Federici at this level after the Australian cost his side two possible victories in succession.

The Wednesday evening clash, moved from next week due to Chelsea’s European Super Cup duties, was a chance for the Blues to play their first competitive home fixture following their Champions League heroics last May.

They started like contenders, dominating possession from kick-off as Reading’s touches were limited to the occasional interception and a Federici save from Ramires.

Torres almost opened his season account with a wonder goal, nutmegging and rounding defenders for fun before seeing his finish blocked by a sliding Alex Pearce, but the hosts were able to take the lead soon afterwards when Hazard tricked Chris Gunther into a rash challenge, referee Lee Mason pointing to the spot.

Lampard solidified his position as second-highest penalty scorer in Premier League history with a smart drive into the bottom left, his 39th from the spot, although some way off record holder Alan Shearer (56).

But from that point onwards Chelsea fell to pieces, a combination of poor defending and a fading midfield contributing to a speedy demise.

That Reading had been forced to attack after conceding was largely irrelevant – both their goals were eminently avoidable.

The first came thanks to hesitant defending from John Terry, who was dragged out of position to cover Cole but failed to close down Gareth McLeary. His fine cross picked out Pogrebnyak, who easily beat Cahill to a flicked header that evaded Cech and nestled in the top left.

That was shoddy, but Reading’s second was unforgivable. Terry gave away a needless free-kick on the left-hand edge of the Chelsea penalty area, but Cech should have easily held on to Guthrie’s daisy cutter – not only did the Czech keeper fail to gather his shot, he palmed it into his own net in what will be considered one of the howlers of the season.

Pearce should have added a third before half time but he somehow failed to make contact with an excellent Ian Harte free-kick, despite being unmarked with just Cech to beat; Torres repaid the favour at the other end, although it was a more difficult header from between Pearce and Kaspars Gorkss.

Chelsea were toiling badly, in shell-shock following that quickfire Reading double, but also struggling in the middle of the park with both Ramires – only recently recovered from illness – and Juan Mata below par.

But Di Matteo should be credited for a pair of substitutions which changed the balance of the game: first Oscar replaced compatriot Ramires, immediately giving the hosts more dynamism in midfield; then Daniel Sturridge came on for John Obi Mikel, adding a more direct width to Chelsea’s attacks and crucially allowing Hazard to adopt a more central role.

The Belgian won Chelsea’s first game of the season at Wigan, and he did so again – even when his team struggled, the former Lille playmaker was fleet of foot and thought as he won free-kicks for fun.

He was now making the team tick and, having moved into the middle, forced a decent stop from Federici after a long passing move that sparked the turning point in the match.

After good play from Oscar, Torres saw another effort blocked, this time by Pearce, and seconds after Sturridge entered the fray Chelsea were level.

Cahill has a fondness for getting forward and scoring spectacular long-range efforts, but Federici should have stopped his swerving drive on 70 minutes – the error was not as bad as Cech’s, nor his own against Stoke at the weekend, but he got two strong hands on the ball and should have kept it out.

A Chelsea victory was inevitable as they lay camp in the Reading half, Mata firing a low drive through the yellow shirts with Federici a spectator, but the finish fizzing wide of the post.

They snuck ahead soon afterwards but there was a heavy dose of offside about Torres when he crept in unmarked to tap home a low Cole cross that managed to evade Reading’s defence and keeper.

It was a wonderful team passing move - Mata's through ball to Cole a particular delight - but close inspection of the replays showed Torres to be a fraction offside, although it was tight.

With 10 minutes remaining, Reading were forced into an unnatural all-out attack mode and they could have drawn level after some good late pressure, Harte’s late free-kick deflected behind for a corner.

From that final set piece Chelsea completed the comeback, Federici giving chase after Torres cleared the corner but left no chance against Hazard, who zipped away down the right before unselfishly handing Ivanovic an easy finish, Gunther the only Reading player able to get back in time but outnumbered by the hosts.

It added a sheen to an unconvincing win but with two wins in two matches Chelsea have laid a marker as they attempt to convert last season’s cup form into a convincing league threat.

Chelsea got their Premier League campaign off to a winning start with a 2-0 victory over Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium.

Branislav Ivanovic and Frank Lampard had the European champions two goals up within seven minutes of the kick-off after a blistering early start orchestrated by their marquee summer signing, Eden Hazard.

The Belgian playmaker laid on the through ball from which Ivanovic went on to score his first goal since Chelsea's 2-1 win over Wigan back in April before winning the penalty which Lampard converted soon afterwards.

The rest of the game was not exactly the sort of dominant performance befitting of Chelsea's status as the reigning European champions, with several uncertain moments at the back and Wigan spurning some decent chances, but Roberto Di Matteo will just be satisfied to get a first win as the London club's full-time manager under his belt.

Hazard was the only one of Chelsea three summer signings to start at the DW, with Oscar starting on the bench and Marko Marin not included in the squad. Defender Ivan Ramis had a Wigan debut to forget as he was outwitted by Hazard for both of Chelsea's goals.

Chelsea's joint-biggest away win in the Premier League came at the DW Stadium almost two years ago to the day, and their fast start had many wondering if another drubbing was on the cards.

With just two minutes on the clock Hazard turned in the centre circle and rolled a ball into the path of Branislav Ivanovic's galloping run. The Serb defender charged into the area and coolly finished past goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi.

Ivanovic was allowed to play in his club's opener despite getting sent off in last weekend's Community Shield due to that showpiece no longer being classified as a first-team match by the FA, and Chelsea reaped the rewards of that administrative adjustment.

Ramis was the player Hazard spun around before setting up Ivanovic's opener, and the Spaniard was again undone by the Chelsea man's poise and skill after five minutes when he tripped the Belgian inside the area to concede a clear penalty.

Frank Lampard hammered his strike from 12 yards low and underneath Al Habsi's dive to register a seventh goal on the opening day of a season in his career, one behind Alan shearer's Premier League record of eight.

After that early blitz, Wigan began to see more of the ball but they were unable to fashion many chances. The home side felt they should have had a penalty when Petr Cech appeared to catch the ball just outside the area, but none of the officials were sure enough to penalise the Chelsea keeper.

Victor Moses, reportedly a target for Chelsea, tested Cech with a well-struck effort from a wide angle that the keeper met with strong hands, but the Czech should have been beaten in first-half injury time. Maynor Figueroa played Franco Di Santo through on goal, but the former Chelsea striker's hesitation was costly as Cech and David Luiz combined to deny the forward.

For all the attacking talent Chelsea now have on their books, Fernando Torres is the only out-and-out striker at their disposal, but the Euro 2012 golden boot winner was unable to open his account for the season. He came close to scoring after showing great strength to battle his way into the area and trickle to ball past Al Habsi, but Ramis was on hand to clear it off the line.

Both Oscar and Wigan's new striker Arouna Kone looked lively after they were both introduced midway through the second half. Brazilian attacker Oscar fired wide with a low shot from range while Kone enjoyed lots of good interplay with fellow substitute Jordi Gomez, who fired a spectacular overhead kick off target with five minutes of the 90 remaining.

Individual errors from Ashley Cole and Cech could have proved costly on another day, but Wigan were unable to capitalise and Chelsea sealed their 12th win in 15 league meetings against the Latics.

Didier Drogba has confirmed he plans to quit Chelsea following his Champions League final heroics, according to France Football magazine.

The Ivory Coast striker has been quoted saying he informed his team-mates of his decision during the club's open-top bus parade on Monday after leading them to the greatest moment in their history on Saturday night.

"We will no longer be together next season," the 34-year-old said in quotes attributed to France Football magazine.

Drogba, who has reportedly already agreed a deal to join Shanghai Shenhua when his Chelsea contract expires this summer, is said to have admitted he struggled to get the words out and burst into tears.

He went on to say: "As I decided to leave, I wanted to tell them straight in the eye. Except that I could not do it. They made me crack.

"Even though it's been three years since I said I wanted to leave, I find it hard to admit that it's over with this club - especially as I did not feel like this.

"But I could not see myself sitting on the bench to watch others play when the club plans to set up a new team.

"So that's it - I am preparing for my leap into the unknown. It's going to be another adventure."

A relatively late developer who only signed his first professional contract at 21, Drogba has scored 157 goals for Chelsea since joining from Marseille in 2004.

His final goals were the equaliser in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich, and the winning spot-kick in the subsequent penalty shoot-out.

Manchester United came from three goals down to draw 3-3 at Chelsea in a pulsating Premier League match at Stamford Bridge.

Second-half strikes from Juan Mata and David Luiz added to a first-half own-goal by Jonny Evans to bring up a 3-0 scoreline that flattered the hosts somewhat.

But United raised their game and, spearheaded by Wayne Rooney – who netted two penalties – they drew level thanks to a late Javier Hernandez header.

David De Gea made an incredible late save to deny Mata’s wonderful free-kick, with the Spaniard tipping over a Gary Cahill effort at the death as the spoils were shared in West London.

The result means United are two points behind leaders Manchester City, while fourth-placed Chelsea edge a point ahead of Newcastle United, who beat Aston Villa earlier on Sunday.

Chelsea will be wondering how they failed to win the game given their position before United’s first penalty went in on 58 minutes.

Questions will again be asked of Andre Villas-Boas’s tactical acuity: Daniel Sturridge had been a livewire all match, forcing Evans’s own-goal and leading the line with confidence, while Torres – for all his hard work – looked lost once more, picking up a fourth booking since last February that means he has seen yellow more often than the back of the net for the Blues, although he did get a fine assist.

But when United pulled it back to 3-2 following a contentious penalty given when Danny Welbeck bought contact from Branislav Ivanovic, the Portuguese coach removed Sturridge and not Torres for Oriol Romeu.

Romeu has good positional sense, but he had a limited impact - possibly startled by the intensity of the occasion - while it is common knowledge that retreating into a defensive shell plays to Manchester United's strengths of relentless attack from all angles.

John Terry was missing for Chelsea with fellow defender Ashley Cole also absent; United, meanwhile, welcomed back Rooney and Ashley Young from injury, although Nani failed to make the squad.

A tense first half saw United make most of the running, while Chelsea got the lucky breaks – including one that Reds fans will insist cancels out their questionable penalty.

Referee Howard Webb failed to penalise a clear foul from Cahill, which started outside the area but left Welbeck in a heap when he was through on goal. Had it been given, Chelsea would most likely have gone down to 10 men at an early stage.

The Blues’ second slice of fortune resulted in them taking the lead: Sturridge did well to beat a sluggish Patrice Evra to the by-line, but his low cross flew past De Gea and in off the chest of a helpless Evans.

Chelsea went close to an immediate second when Sturridge forced a smart stop from De Gea, so United cranked up the pressure, creating chances through Young, Welbeck and Rooney – Petr Cech making fine saves to deny all three.

The second half seemed to be set for a United comeback but, practically from the restart, Chelsea doubled their lead with a wonderful goal.

Torres was in acres of space down the right with Evra again missing. The goal-shy striker floated over a delightful cross that landed to his diminutive Spain team-mate Mata: in a flash, and with marvellous technique, the former Valencia playmaker hammered an incredible volley that flew past De Gea into the roof of the net.

It was some goal and within three minutes it was 3-0, although a combination of poor defending and yet more luck saw Luiz meet Mata’s free-kick with a header, allowed to do so by poor marking and helped past De Gea by the shoulder of Rio Ferdinand.

Sir Alex Ferguson responded by introducing Hernandez, but the Mexican super-sub was not involved as Evra went some way to compensating for his defensive frailties by bounding into the box to draw a clumsy challenge from Sturridge.

It was a penalty and Rooney responded with a clean finish into the roof of the net, bringing it back to 3-1.

While that decision was clear, United’s second spot-kick was dubious to say the least: in an almost-identical incident to that which saw Manchester City’s Adam Johnson win a penalty off Fulham’s Chris Baird on Saturday, Welbeck hung a leg out to draw contact off Serb defender Ivanovic.

It was gamesmanship by Welbeck and Webb – perhaps with his earlier mistake in mind – pointed to the spot, Ivanovic’s righteous disbelief mimicking that of Baird’s at Eastlands. Rooney was not put off though, coolly slotting the penalty one way and sending Cech the other, and it was game on.

The England striker was at the heart of everything, taking the game to Chelsea and ably supported by marauding wide-man Antonio Valencia, who had been put to right-back following Paul Scholes’s entrance but was playing more like Cafu than Gary Neville.

As United piled forward, Chelsea were still creating chances – De Gea making a decent stop from Michael Essien’s long-range hammer, and Torres delaying his shot enough for Valencia to block after the misfiring Spaniard played himself past Evans with a clever header.

But the script insisted United should complete the miraculous comeback, and they did so in some style as – after another bounding run and cross from Valencia – Rooney drew a fine stop from Cech: Ryan Giggs picked it up wide left and, as he has done for what seems like an eternity, the old man of the Premier League curled a wonderful cross that Hernandez was destined to meet with a headed goal.

There was still time for some late drama as De Gea went some way to compensating for errors in previous matches with a miracle stop from Mata’s curling free-kick, showing incredibly agility and speed to pluck the ball from the top right.

The former Atletico Madrid man was called into action again when, in the fourth minute of injury time, a trademark Cahill piledriver was tipped over for a corner.

United were not to be undone, holding out for the draw, and – while they remain behind City – they are still very much in the hunt for the title.

Chelsea, meanwhile, continue to look over their shoulders at Newcastle and Arsenal as the threat of finishing outside the top four looms.

Manchester City moved back on track in their Premier League title hunt with a 3-0 win at home to Fulham at a snowy Eastlands.

The league leaders, stunned 1-0 at Everton last time out, overcame the poor conditions with a Sergio Aguero penalty, Chris Baird own-goal and Edin Dzeko strike to open up a three-point, nine-goal gap on second-placed Manchester United, who visit Chelsea on Sunday.

City controlled the game, dominating possession and pegging Fulham back into their own half for large swathes of the first half.

However, the Premier League leaders seemed a touch static when reaching the final third, with the exception of Adam Johnson, a livewire on the right, although he faded in the second half.

And the two first-half goals they did score resulted from work by the former Middlesbrough winger, although they will not enter his portfolio of top moments.

On nine minutes a mazy run from the England international sent him wriggling into the box: Chris Baird, playing out of position at left-back, stuck out a leg but quickly withdrew it.

Johnson had already started his tumble though, wrapping his own leg around Baird’s almost as an afterthought: it happened in an instant, Mike Dean convinced enough to point to the spot while the replays suggested gamesmanship from Johnson.

Aguero stood up for the spot-kick and, dubious as the award was, his finish was superb, high and mighty into the top right, his 15th in the league this season.

Within 10 minutes Johnson took another tumble in the box, but this time Dean did not buy his aquatic antics, waving play on with Baird relieved.

It would not be Baird’s day though as, on the half-hour mark, he scored an unfortunate own-goal.

Johnson was involved once again but, crafty as his earlier intervention was, this one was all down to his poor shooting, an effort going nowhere near goal before taking a wild deflection off the Northern Irishman to leave the returning Mark Schwarzer helpless.

While the first penalty incident was debatable City, at 2-0, should have had another, with Dickson Etuhu fortunate to escape after rattling into David Silva from behind.

That evoked some kind of response from Fulham, who had been drearily negative prior to their best spell leading into the break.

After Philippe Senderos almost scored another own-goal when deflecting Micah Richards’s cross into Schwarzer’s arms. Damien Duff had a couple of efforts wide while Simon Davies forced a straightforward save from Joe Hart after some cute build-up play.

But with Fulham coming forward more City were even more dangerous as it played to their preferred counter-attack, with Schwarzer saving well from Aguero and Dzeko denied by a Brede Hangeland block.

The second half was a difficult affair as the snow thickened both on the pitch and in the air: it was causing problems, Hart struggling to hold on to daisy-cutters from Stephen Kelly and Baird, while referee Dean made a clear mistake by booking Senderos when Aleksandr Kolarov went in late on the Swiss, and not vice versa, the former Arsenal defender getting the ball first and an injury in the 50-50.

Meanwhile the conditions worsened, the groundsmen rushing on to shovel snow from the lines as the pitch whitened as the game got ragged.

However, the third goal - on 72 minutes - was a work of brilliance, as a mesmerising solo run from Aguero was capped off by a cut-back that Dzeko gobbled up with a low finish.

It was a touch harsh on Fulham as they had done better in the second half, indeed hitting the post through Dempsey while John-Arne Riise forced a smart stop from Hart.

But City had some chances late on, Richards bounding forward after a ‘steal’ off Moussa Dembele but putting his shot wide, while no-one was able to finish a superb cut-back from Kolarov in the dying seconds.

There were some handbags too, as Dembele and Kolarov escaped with bookings after going tete-a-tete over a petty foul by the Serb.

So the win was ultimately deserved but the margin of victory somewhat flattering for City, who will hope that Chelsea do them a favour at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.