Double winners Chelsea fired an early warning to their Premier
League title rivals as Didier Drogba smashed a hat-trick in their
opening-day thrashing of new boys West Brom at Stamford Bridge.
Florent Malouda set the Blues on their way after only six minutes,
with Drogba's free-kick extending the lead on the stroke of half-time.
It was more one-way traffic after the restart, as the Ivory Coast
striker netted from close range with Frank Lampard making it 4-0
just after the hour.
Drogba's deflected effort and a last-minute strike from Malouda
sealed an emphatic win for the champions, who put last week's 3-1
defeat by Manchester United in the Community Shield at Wembley firmly
behind them.
Despite being outplayed, West Brom and their manager Roberto Di
Matteo, the former Chelsea midfielder, deserve credit for continuing
to display some good passing football, but which tellingly lacked
a cutting edge in the final third.
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