Ballack Spares Blues Blushes  (Sky Sports)

Chelsea 3 Ipswich Town 1

Michael Ballack bailed the Blues out of trouble as he struck either side of an Alex Bruce equaliser, while Franck Lampard bagged a third late on.

The hosts appeared to be in complete control of the Stamford Bridge encounter as they began the game in lively fashion.

Luiz Felipe Scolari's side dominated their Championship opponents for long periods and deservedly took the lead after just 16 minutes.

Ashley Cole's inch-perfect pass put Ballack in on goal and he made no mistake in turning the ball past Richard Wright.

However, against the run of play, Ipswich levelled matters on 34 minutes when Bruce was on hand to stab home after Owen Garvin's free-kick had caused panic in the Chelsea box.

Any hopes the Tractor Boys had of causing an upset disappeared, though, on 59 minutes when Ballack curled a sublime set-piece past the stranded Wright.

Lampard then rounded off the scoring five minutes from time with a spectacular long-range effort to make the result appear more comfortable than it actually was.

Chelsea began in a confident mood and could have opened the scoring in the first minute.

Lampard found Florent Malouda with a long ball and the France winger cut inside from the left before unleashing a shot which Wright did well to save at his near post.

But there was a scare for the hosts in the sixth minute when an error from Jose Bosingwa allowed Ipswich to fashion their first chance of the game.

A cross from Jon Walters caused enough mild panic in the home defence for David Norris to nip in and head over from six yards.

In the ninth minute Ballack was guilty of a glaring miss when Nicolas Anelka found him unmarked inside the penalty area.

The Germany captain only had to find a way past goalkeeper Wright but inexplicably sent his left-footed volley wide.

Ballack made up for his miss in the 16th minute when Chelsea took the lead with a flowing three-man move.

Lampard fed Ashley Cole on the left flank and the England defender's cross was turned in by Ballack from six yards.

Ballack almost grabbed a second goal in the 20th minute but his long-range shot was high and wide.

Punished

Chelsea's inability to defend set-pieces has been one of their faults this season and they were punished again in the 34th minute when Ipswich levelled.

A free-kick from Garvan was deflected twice before hitting Ricardo Carvalho on the chest. The ball fell for Alex Bruce to fire home from close range.

Moments later Danny Haynes sent an 18-yard shot over the bar as Ipswich began to run Chelsea ragged.

Petr Cech then had to be alert to stop a shot from Tommy Miller, and Scolari's side were beginning to visibly wilt under Ipswich pressure.

Chelsea began the second half more brightly and Salomon Kalou almost found the net when he tried to curl a 20-yard shot around Wright and into the far corner.

Despite intense pressure, Chelsea could not create another clear-cut opening and Scolari replaced the ineffective Malouda with Didier Drogba in the 57th minute.

Two minutes later Ipswich's Garvan was booked for bringing down Anelka as the striker burst towards the penalty area.

The offence provided Chelsea with a chance to go back in front and Ballack punished Ipswich in style when he bent his free-kick over the defensive wall and beyond Wright for his second goal of the game.

Intricate

In the 64th minute, some intricate approach play from Chelsea saw Lampard and Ballack combine to set up Kalou.

The Ivorian beat the offside trap but saw his low shot superbly saved by Wright.

Two minutes later and Ballack almost grabbed a hat-trick goal when he was invited to shoot by the Ipswich defence.

Ballack's 25-yard strike was pushed away by Wright who also managed to recover in time to save a follow-up effort from Bosingwa.

Ipswich were having to do some dogged defending as Chelsea increased the tempo.

Lampard, who had shone throughout, looked certain to make it 3-1 but his shot was deflected for a corner which Chelsea wasted.

The visitors were tiring visibly but wasted a fine chance when a cross from Bruce evaded everyone in the six-yard box.

Worringly for Chelsea, Carvalho had to be replaced by Branislav Ivanovic in the 69th minute.

But Chelsea ended Ipswich's resistance in sensational style five minutes from time when Lampard sent a 35-yard free-kick dipping into the top corner.

Teams

Chelsea  Cech, A. Cole, Alex, Bosingwa, Carvalho (Ivanovic 70), Ballack (Deco 79), Belletti, Lampard, Anelka, Kalou, Malouda (Drogba 58)
Subs Not Used  Cudicini, Ferreira, Mancienne, Stoch
Booked 
Goals  Ballack 16, 59, Lampard 85

Ipswich Town  R. Wright, Bruce, McAuley, Balkestein, D. Wright, Haynes (Lisbie 60), Miller (Quinn 81), Garvan, Norris, Walters (Stead 71), Counago
Subs Not Used Supple, Thatcher, Shumulikoski, Bowditch
Booked  Bruce, Garvan, Lisbie
Goals  Bruce 34

Attendance 41,137

Referee A. Wiley