Who said European hangover? Chelsea won their first Premiership match since demolishing Manchester United 5-0 almost two months ago, but should have made the game safe earlier.

They were always in charge, yet there was always, one sensed, the feeling that mayhem may ensue at any moment. It is this that makes Chelsea the footballing equivalent the wife in 2.4 children.

Flos goal, not one of his finest, came after just 16 minutes following Gianfranco Zolas curling corner. The Norwegian met the ball with, what in his mind was a crisp fierce volley, but what in reality dribbled in off his shin.

It was an important goal, because it settled Chelsea against a battling Bantams side, as they looked the arrest their alarming slump in league form. As the match started, they sat in 10th place, clearly lower than they should be.

Prompted by Gianfranco Zola, the cosmopolitan Chelsea side created and wasted a whole host of chances in the course of the match, shown live on Sky Sports. Of the profligate, Zola was the master, although if he gets any more unlucky, hell metamorphosise into a black cat.

Throughout, he looked for his first league goal since the opening day yet was consistently denied by a mixture of magical goalkeeping and horrible finishing.

Put through when Bjarne Goldbaeks shot deflected to him, he hit his shot well wide. He then had a header wonderfully stopped by Bradford goalkeeper Matt Clarke, following Tore Andre Flos cross.

His piece de resistance was a lob, when Clarke had a rush of blood to the head, but it fell onto the top of the bar and bounced away.

Not that Clarke was restricting his heroics to efforts from the little Italian. The 26-year-old stopper also kept out shots from Gustavo Poyet and Tore Andre Flo, plus a Banks v Pele-like save from Flos second-half header.

Yet for all their domination, they couldnt find a second goal, which meant that City always had a chance. Had Lee Mills been a tad quicker, then he may have reached Jes Hoghs weak backpass, but the former Aberdeen man appeared to be moving towards the ball in slow motion and Ed De Goey rushed out to save.

Lee Mills looping header also needed the big Dutchman to save the day and try as they might, Bradford couldnt get the goal that they needed.

Sky Sports man-of-the-match: Didier Deschamps

Chelsea: De Goey, Ferrer, Desailly, Hogh, Babayaro, Petrescu (Goldbaek 28), Morris, Deschamps, Poyet, Flo, Zola.
Subs Not Used: Di Matteo, Lambourde, Cudicini, Della Bona.
Booked: Deschamps.
Goals: Flo 16.

Bradford: Clarke, Halle, Wetherall, O'Brien, Myers, Lawrence, Windass, Redfearn, Whalley (Blake 68), Beagrie, Mills (Rankin 89).
Subs Not Used: Westwood, Dreyer, Taylor.