Charlton Athletic 4 - 2 Chelsea

Charlton 4-2 Chelsea

Updated: December 26, 2003, 11:17 AM ET

It is a time of year when genies work their magic, and can English football ever have produced a man who rubbed his footballing lamp to better effect than Charlton manager Alan Curbishley?

In a decade, Curbishley has spent just £18million assembling the Charlton team which surged towards a European place by demolishing highflying Chelsea 4-2 at The Valley.

• Ranieri: It could have been worse

Quite what Chelsea billionaire Roman Abramovich must have been thinking in the stands as he contemplated his £111million outlay is anyone's guess.

Goals from Hermann Hreidarsson, Matt Holland, Jonatan Johansson and Jason Euell were the vital statistics behind Charlton's first victory on Boxing Day in the Premiership.

And while John Terry and Eidur Gudjohnsen replied for Chelsea it must be said that Charlton deserved their victory in front of their highest crowd for 11 years, 26,768.

Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri had apparently insisted that English only be spoken in his dressing room in an attempt to foster more unity among his huge squad.

He must be wondering whether his players have been studying from the same phrase book after a display which proved his side have still much to learn in their quest to challenge Arsenal and Manchester United at the top of the table.

Curbishley meanwhile just continues to weave his magic, spending only as much in the last 10 years as Chelsea have done on Damien Duff.

It is that type of good housekeeping and shrewd management which has seen Curbishley linked with the job at Tottenham even though he insists nobody at White Hart Lane has spoken to him about the post.

"I'm happy at Charlton," said Curbishley, who added that feeling would remain as long as the little East London club retained its ambition.

Taking Charlton to the next level and into Europe for the first time could require more serious money than Curbishley has so far been allowed - but in this game you would never have known it.

They made the best possible start when they took the lead after just 42 seconds and it came via a swinging corner from the right by Paolo Di Canio. John Terry, the defender likely to fill suspended Rio Ferdinand's boots for England at Euro 2004, failed to clear the swinging cross and Hreidarsson rose to head the ball powerfully past Chelsea's goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini.

Chelsea were level eight minutes later when Terry made up for his earlier error. It was the simplest of goals. Adrian Mutu's free-kick on the left swirled into the penalty area where it was met by a glancing header from Terry to leave Charlton goalkeeper Dean Kiely with no chance.

The goal brought a trademark grin to the face of Abramovich in the stand, though his team even then were looking anything but the most expensively assembled side in the Premiership.

Charlton were more cohesive, had more attacking ideas and their extra endeavour paid off in the 34th minute when Jonatan Johansson again surged up the left. He promptly swung over a teasing left foot cross and this time skipper Matt Holland arrived bang on cue to direct his header home - a suspicion of offside perhaps but much too marginal to be certain.

Ranieri sent on Eidur Gudjohnsen for disappointing Jesper Gronkjaer at half-time but Chelsea were again stung by a lightning Charlton raid.

The half was only two minutes old when Di Canio weaved his magic down the left flank, twisting and turning past unfortunate Terry before supplying a pinpoint cross which Johansson turned in at the far post.

By now, Charlton were giving their illustrious neighbours a lesson and in the 53rd minute they went even further ahead when Jason Euell latched on to a defensive lapse from Wayne Bridge to slide the ball past Cudicini to give a Charlton a 4-1 lead. It was no more than they deserved.

Chelsea got one back when Gudjohnsen collected the loose ball in the penalty area and fired home.

And while Chelsea launched a stirring rally in which Gudjohnsen went close and Terry had a goal disallowed for a foul, they never looked like salvaging a point.

Ranieri: It could have been worse

Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri believed the defeat could have been heavier for his side.

He said: 'We left them too many chances to score a goal. They scored four goals but they could have scored more.'

He added: 'They started very, very well. They scored immediately, it was not easy. We equalised and they scored again at the beginning of the second. We switched off and it was very disappointing.

'It was a strange match for us. We made two or three chances to score and they were dangerous from set-pieces but then it was 4-1.'

The Italian wanted to concentrate on Sunday's home game against Portsmouth but warned his players that two more defeats would see them drop out of the title chase.

'We tried to do our best today but it was wrong and now we must think about Portsmouth.

'Sir Alex Ferguson said to his players, "No more than five defeats in the league", and I think the same. We have only two more defeats left.'

Charlton boss Alan Curbishley told Sky Sports 2: 'It wasn't our best performance - we have had some better ones - but it was a welcome win.

'Forget that it was Chelsea. We just needed to win today.

'We had a couple of things we were going to do if they changed their shape. One thing we wanted to do was score first and we did. To score so early gave everyone a lift.'

Asked about Charlton's potential to finish in the top half of the table, Curbishley said: 'We have had lots of problems but we will get one or two players back in the new year.

'I think we are a top-half side but we have to prove it.

'Everyone talks about 40 points [to avoid relegation]. We have tried to get beyond that this time and get into the top half and stay there.

'However, there's a long way to go. If we can produce some good home form then who knows.'

Charlton midfielder Scott Parker had no doubts his side deserved their victory.

Parker told Sky Sports: 'It was hard work in the first half. The later the game went on we knew Chelsea were going to be piling on the pressure, which they did, but overall I think we deserved it.'

The win keeps Charlton in the thick of the teams bidding to land the fourth Champions League spot and Parker believes the arrival of Paolo Di Canio is helping the club aim high.

He added: 'Since this man came he has brought something we maybe hadn't before. He gets us playing and working hard and that has pushed us up the table.

'We have been known to get 40 points and tail away but we have got to believe in ourselves. It is about belief, not just wanting to get 40 points but look beyond that.'

Di Canio hailed a 'fantastic performance' from his team-mates.

The Italian said: 'I don't think people know what potential we have and what quality.

'Maybe people do not expect Charlton to win but we believe in ourselves. We score goals and we are happy. The win came after a fantastic performance from our team.

'It was a great game to play and it was a special day.'