First-half goals from Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard moved Chelsea to the top of the Premier League table as they comfortably beat West Brom.

Drogba's looping header after three minutes, his first league goal of the season, set up a dominant performance.

Albion fought hard until Lampard's close-range finish in first-half stoppage time killed them off.

West Brom had a little more of the game after the break but Chelsea were able to cruise to victory.

Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari chose to pair Premier League top scorer Nicolas Anelka with Drogba up front, and the decision paid immediate dividends.

Drogba met Joe Cole's swirling cross from the right and delivered a well-placed header past the helpless Scott Carson.

West Brom were barely in the game in the first half as Chelsea engineered time and space on both flanks, with Albion striker Craig Beattie alone and frustrated up front for the visitors.

But the home side sometimes struggled to convert their possession into shots on goal, Lampard the chief culprit as a succession of chances lacked the telling finish.

Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech dealt comfortably with Albion's few opportunities, Do-Heon Kim's bundled half-chance their only first-half strike of note.

Ashley Cole forced Carson into a superb double save, first tipping Cole's lethal left-footed strike on to the post, then pouncing on the rebound.

And West Brom's back line soon suffered another blow as centre-half Abdoulaye Meite pulled up and was forced off while chasing down Lampard.

It was Lampard who crushed the visitors' resistance as they tried to hold on for half time.

Chelsea's last attack of the half found Lampard surging on to a loose ball in the Albion area.

He negotiated the flailing leg of Paul Robinson with precision footwork before finishing from a matter of yards.

Early in the second half, Ballack combined with Anelka to create an opportunity for a third, Anelka threading the ball through for Lampard, who failed to weight his chip well enough to clear Carson.

West Brom slowly inched forward as the second half wore on, earning enough possession to threaten the Chelsea goal.

But Chris Brunt's wildly optimistic 30-yard drive into the crowd summed up Albion's frustration at their lack of clear-cut opportunities.

Each attack for the visitors left Chelsea space to exploit on the break, and Drogba should have done better when he blazed wide having had time to steady himself.

Moments later Drogba again found himself with time and space, only to be denied by Carson from close range, with Robinson getting a foot in front of the rebound.

That marked Drogba's last contribution of the game in his first Premier League start since September, Scolari replacing the 30-year-old with Florent Malouda. Continued    Source: BBC - BBC News