<<Print>>

BRANISLAV IVANOVIC and Frank Lampard fired the early goals as Chelsea eased into the new season with a win at Wigan. Barely two minutes were on the clock when the European Champions took the lead, Ivanovic calmly slotting home after a marauding run down the right. Five minutes later and Chelsea had the game in the bag, with impressive debutant Eden Hazard�s mazy run checked in the box by Ivan Ramis for an obvious penalty. Lampard duly stepped up to take it, firing past Ali Al Habsi for a comfortable two-goal lead. Wigan did perk up after their dozy start, finishing the first half with the bulk of the possession. Fernando Torres had started for Chelsea and came close to a first goal of the season when Ramis cleared his second-half effort off the line. That was the closest either side came after the break, with Roberto Di Matteo's men holding on for the three points.Hazard was Chelsea�s highest-profile signing of the close season and it took the Belgian less than two minutes to show why the Blues splashed out �32million. He turned another summer signing, Wigan�s Ramis, rather too easily in midfield and played a perfect ball through for the onrushing Ivanovic. The defender was not in his natural territory but he showed impressive composure to run on and slot the ball past Al Habsi. Wigan and Ramis� afternoon soon got worse as the former Real Mallorca defender crudely upended Hazard in the penalty area and Lampard tucked away the penalty. The Latics have endured 6-0 and 8-0 defeats by Chelsea in recent seasons and the DW Stadium must have feared the worst � but those were Chelsea's only two shots of the first half. Wigan captain Gary Caldwell found a way of stopping Hazard, chopping down the midfielder to earn himself a yellow card in the 11th minute, but the home side began to settle and dominate possession. Franco Di Santo headed just over from an Emmerson Boyce cross, while the home fans felt Cech had handled the ball outside his area but referee Mike Jones disagreed. In the 38th minute Cech was called upon to make his first proper save from a rasping Victor Moses effort, the winger showing why Chelsea have been pursuing him all summer. Di Santo had Wigan�s clearest opening of the half in injury time when he was played in by Maynor Figueroa but his first touch allowed Cech to close him down and a combination of the keeper and David Luiz cleared the danger. The influential Shaun Maloney was forced off only three minutes into the second half and replaced by Jordi Gomez, but the pattern of the game did not change. For all Wigan�s pressure, Chelsea came within millimetres of making it three in the 63rd minute as Torres, who had been very quiet, finally found some space and his shot beat Al Habsi only for Ramis to slide in on the line to clear. Chelsea boss Di Matteo then replaced one new signing with another, Oscar coming on for Hazard, while Kone made his Wigan debut in place of Di Santo.