Cesc Fabregas's first Premier League goal in Chelsea colours helped the title favourites to record a 2-1 victory away at Crystal Palace this afternoon.
Oscar struck to put the visitors in front early on, before drama ensued in the closing stages of the first half as Chelsea full-back Cesar Azpilicueta and Palace centre-back Damien Delaney were both red carded in a matter of minutes.
Playmaker Fabregas then pounced to extend his side's lead further shortly after the restart and, despite a late goal from Palace frontman Fraizer Campbell, Jose Mourinho's men claimed the spoils.
Here, Sports Mole has rated the performance of each of the players on show at Selhurst Park.
PALACE
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Goal
Julian Speroni: It was one of those afternoon's for Speroni where he just has to hold up his hands and admit that he has been beaten by two great goals. Aside from that, the Argentine made a couple of smart stops. (6/10)
Defence
Martin Kelly: The former Liverpool defender was steady enough, even when he was moved into the unfamiliar surroundings of centre-back. (6/10)
Brede Hangeland: Back in the team in the absence of Scott Dann, the big Norwegian looked a little sluggish at times, but he still made a number of good clearances. (6/10)
Damien Delaney: It's little wonder that people accuse footballers of lacking common sense when Delaney gets himself sent off so stupidly. Both of his fouls deserved bookings and his departure evened up the numbers. (4/10)
Joel Ward: We are used to seeing Ward bomb down the flank, sending dangerous crosses into the box in the process. That did not happen today, though, as he was largely restricted to defensive duties. (5/10)
Midfield
Mile Jedinak: The skipper was industrious as always, but there were times when he looked to be struggling majorly with the speed of passing from the likes of Fabregas and Oscar. (6/10)
James McArthur: The Scot covered plenty of ground and made some good challenges in crucial areas before he limped off with a thigh injury. His boss Warnock will be hoping that it is not a serious complaint. (6/10)
Joe Ledley: The Wales international struggled to have any impact against the likes of Fabregas and Oscar. He did work hard in fairness, but saw very little of the ball before he was replaced. (5/10)
Yannick Bolasie: Back from international duty, the usually bright and lively wideman looked a little sluggish on occasions. Having said that, he almost scored in the first half. (5/10)
Jason Puncheon: The winger had some bright moments during the first half - including one stinging shot - but he seemed to suffer when his side were reduced to 10 men. (6/10)
Attack
Fraizer Campbell: The frontman was arguably Palace's best player today. His quick movement caused plenty of problems to Gary Cahill and he deserved his goal. A bit more composure at certain times and he could have had one or two more. (7/10)
Substitutes
Adrian Mariappa: He was brought on to shore up the defence and made some good challenges to break up attacks. (6/10)
Adlene Guedioura: The midfielder slipped in Zaha to set up Campbell for the Palace goal, but showed very little elsewhere. (5/10)
Wilfried Zaha: The Manchester United loanee injected some pace into proceedings in the closing stages and, having miscued a couple of crosses, he atoned by laying a goal on a plate for Campbell. (6/10)
CHELSEA
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Goal
Thibaut Courtois: The young Belgian made a couple of smart saves during the first half and was mainly a spectator in the second. (6/10)
Defence
Branislav Ivanovic: You know what you are going to get from the Serbian. He was solid defensively and when the opportunity arose, he got forward well. (6/10)
John Terry: With Campbell being marked by Cahill, Terry often found himself free. Even so, the ball seemed to be attracted to the Chelsea skipper, who made a host of clearances. (6/10)
Gary Cahill: During the first half, Cahill was given a hard time by Campbell. He looked lacklustre, which is unlike the England centre-back. He had a much easier second half, but that was largely because his team dominated. (5/10)
Cesar Azpilicueta: It had been another steady performance from the full-back until he lunged into a challenge with Jedinak and was rightly sent off. It was an incident to forget for the Spaniard. (5/10)
Midfield
Nemanja Matic: He may not get many headlines, but Matic's teammates will appreciate his work. He sat in front of the back four, snuffed out any danger and kept his passing simple. (6/10)
Cesc Fabregas: His first goal for Chelsea in the Premier League rounded off yet another top performance from the Spaniard. Fabregas always kept the ball moving and showed good composure when scoring. (8/10)
Willian: The Brazilian looked lively on occasions in the final third, but he was sacrificed by his manager when Azpilicueta was red carded just before the break (6/10)
Oscar: The Brazilian hit a great opening goal, which seemed to do wonders for his confidence. He constantly ran between the lines of the Palace defence and midfield, which caused numerous problems. (8/10)
Eden Hazard: With Fabregas and Oscar pulling the strings, Hazard struggled to have the type of impact that he would have been hoping for. That's not to say that he was particularly bad, but he did not make the most of Chelsea's domination. (6/10)
Attack
Loic Remy: Charged with the task of replacing nine-goal Diego Costa, Remy put in a good shift. His movement and hold up play was very good, but he did not get the chance to flex his goalscoring muscles. (6/10)
Substitutes
Filipe Luis: Having not played much Premier League football previously, Luis looked a little nervous at first, but he soon grew into the game and got forward well. (6/10)
Mohamed Salah: The Egyptian had little time to use his pace, although he did put in a good defensive shift. (5/10)
Didier Drogba: Brought on in stoppage time to let the clock tick down and barely touched the ball. It would be unfair to give the veteran a mark!
Liam Apicella
