Josh the job for Blues

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti hailed the performance of teenage midfielder Josh McEachran as the Blues clinched top spot in Group F of the Champions League with a 2-1 win over MSK Zilina.

The English champions had to come from behind to beat the Slovakian minnows after Babatounde Bello had shocked Stamford Bridge with a 19th-minute opener.

Second-half goals from Daniel Sturridge and Florent Malouda lifted the gloom, and in 17-year-old McEachran the Blues have unearthed a real star in the making.

McEachran, playing in the holding role instead of the injured John Mikel Obi, produced a superb performance with a maturity that belied his years.

His passing, both long and short, was accurate, unhurried and effortless and above all he had the composure and time to pick his targets.

It was a demonstration that the Chelsea academy has nurtured a real gem and the youngster is now certain to become a regular member of the first-team squad.

“I think Josh McEachran can play every game,” said Ancelotti. “He showed his quality. He was good defensively, won a lot of tackles. And, obviously, with the ball he’s fantastic.

“He can play it short or long without problem. He played with personality and I’m happy with his performance. He has to grow, he has to improve, but he’s ready to play.”

Chelsea were left stunned by Zilina’s opener but they rallied to produce a trademark all-action second 45 minutes, even if they only found the net twice.

Left-back Patrick van Aanholt and Didier Drogba both rattled the woodwork and in the end Chelsea deserved their victory. It maintained their 100% record in the Champions League, in what was their 100th game in the competition.

“It was a difficult game because we didn’t start the game well, were 1-0 down,” said Ancelotti. “We had a good reaction in the second half, with more intensity and good play, and plenty of opportunities to score.

“But if we play like we did in the first half, it’s impossible to win the Champions League. If we play like we did in the second then we’ll have a chance.”

Ancelotti was upset at half-time and replaced the poor Gael Kakuta with Salomon Kalou in a successful bid to increase the tempo.

“I was upset because we didn’t play well,” added the Italian. “We were not playing well. We changed something in the second half, changed the intensity of play.

“This was the difference. It was important to win and move on quickly.”

Zilina coach Pavel Hapal was disappointed with the outcome but accepted Chelsea could have won by more than one goal.

He said: “Our players defended very well but Chelsea had many more chances than us and could have won by a bigger margin.”